Post by Kal on Sept 29, 2018 2:14:26 GMT
6.1 - Vengeance
Elizabeth looked at the letter in her hand before offering it to Grady. “I want to tell Marshal myself, you get together a group you see fit and I’ll have him talk to you when we’re done.”
Grady looked at the paper, hesitating on taking it. “Are you sure?” She nodded, keeping the letter in place.
He took it after she confirmed that it was what she wanted to do, then went on his own way. She cupped her hands as she watched him go to the first person he saw, which had been Leona.
She looked over the group before locking eyes with Whitlock while he was attempting to pick himself up off the ground, quickly reaffirming her that she had made the right choice.
As soon as she tried to remember where she had last seen Marshal, someone took a seat next to her and put one of their hands on top of her hands that had been cupped together. “You’re nervous, what’s going on?”
While Elizabeth was always hesitant to call out any of his moods, Marshal would say it as he saw it. He would always say that the easiest way to fix any problems with his observation was to be honest with her and have her correct him if he was wrong.
“Elizabeth?” He sounded concerned, though he normally did. The leadership role was something he was decent at, but something that he hated. Elizabeth knew it stressed him out more than anything and that telling him about Luke would just add another problem.
She nearly told him it was nothing until she noticed Grady and Leona watching her impatiently. He knew she hadn’t said anything yet and he wasn’t going to take his eyes off of her until she did.
Elizabeth got and dusted herself off. “I need to talk to you. Away from the group, preferably.”
He seemed to only get more nervous himself before getting up and following her down a camping trail. He waited until they had gotten a fair distance from the group before saying anything. “Is everything alright?”
She stopped at one of the picnic benches set up along the trail, taking a seat and waiting for him to sit before she could even think about what to say. “You’re not going to like what I have to say and you’ve got every right to be upset about it. I can just hope that’ll you believe me since I left my proof with the group.”
Things between the two of them had been difficult at times since Marshal had assumed the current position he had. They both understood that it was the lack of time he had for Eris was the reason Joseph didn’t do much while he was the leader, which is why they had been trying to make things work. “Elizabeth, you’ve got no reason to lie to me.”
She nodded. “I know, I just wanted to be sure that you knew that.” Elizabeth already knew she couldn’t put it off much longer without raising his suspicions anymore. “It’s about Luke. He’s been tracking us since we left the motel and knows where we are.”
“How do you know that?” She could already tell by his voice that he was a bit surprised by what she had said and that there was no way he would be prepared for the full truth.
“Because he reached out to me on one of the days that you and Leona went back to the motel. Your dad had the baby and my mom was with Milo, so I was alone and he approached me the second I stepped out of sight from the rest of the group. He told me that if started an affair with him then he’d keep quiet about where the group was as long as we were seeing each other, gave me an address, and then told me I had until Alyssa came back to decide.” She paused to try and decide where to go from there. “Grady overheard it and he swore to me that he’d keep quiet about it until I made a decision.”
The silence she got in response was gut wrenching to her. For once, she didn’t know what to expect from him and he wasn’t giving any indication of what he was feeling. “Why are you telling me this?”
“Just so I can be honest with you.” She took a deep breath, looking at the trees ahead of her. “I’m not going to do it, obviously, but Grady is getting a group together to confront him at the address tonight.”
“Where is it?”
“The bar that has one less bouncer because of you.” She chuckled, trying to calm him down.
She realized her attempt fell flat when she didn’t get a response out of him. “Thanks for telling me.”
He got up and left without another word, heading away from where the group was set up.
Leona
Grady had told her what happened with Elizabeth and told her that he urgently needed her help setting up a group of specific people before nightfall.
She went around to a few of the people he’d named and recruited their help while he got the rest of the group himself.
They noticed Elizabeth and Marshal left the area before to sun started setting, only for Elizabeth to return on her own. She said she couldn’t tell them where Marshal was because she didn’t know and that they would be better off going on their own if they wanted to make it on time.
Grady didn’t like the idea of going without Marshal, so he protested and said they would wait another half hour.
Once he did show up, Grady told him about the plan the group had been informed of and left the rest up to him.
They had to take the truck and the van since the entire group wouldn’t fit in just one of the vehicles, but that didn’t bother anybody.
Despite leaving late, they got to the bar early and tried to get in without raising any alarms since most of them were known and the bartender would be the first to alert Luke and subsequently, Onyx.
The ones who weren’t known to the bartender went in first and opened a door around back to allow the others in without having to pass the bartender.
They waited for a bit before Luke showed up and ordered his drink, heading to his seat. The Voyagers who had weapons quickly took a hiding spot and unholstered their weapons.
The group agreed that it was within Marshal’s rights to be the one to talk to Luke, though they all knew that t would be more than just a talk.
Leona and Milo were supposed to keep things as civil as possible, which loosely meant they needed to prevent any casualties. They were also ordered to stay close to Marshal so they could listen in and provide assistance if things went south.
Marshal took a seat on the stool next to Luke, who refused to look at him. “You know, it’s pretty funny. You’re the same man who dismissed a bartender’s claims of me being a Voyager because I punched him over Elizabeth. I’d almost say it’s a coincidence, but I don’t believe in those.”
“How fucking dense do you have to be to show up here?” Luke took a drink before setting his cup back in the table. “If you need a reminder, you’re wanted for multiple murders of civilians and Onyx officials. This is a public building and I’m an Onyx representative.”
“Since we’re reminding each other of the obvious, you’re walking a thin line between treason against Onyx and attempted extortion. I may have committed the heavier crimes in terms of legality but you’ve committed the worst ones in Isaac’s books.” Luke didn’t respond, prompting Marshal to push more. “You don’t give a shit about what Isaac thinks, that’s no secret, but what about Chelsea? What would she think of you trying to seduce a married woman in one of the most fucked up ways you can?”
Luke took another drink before getting out his seat, Marshal quickly following his lead. Luke quickly scanned the bar before snickering. “You really felt the need to bring eleven other people over this?” He shook his head and sighed. “I’ll spell it out for you since you really don’t get it, she doesn’t love you. She was using you to have a kid, she got that and you even proved to her that you’re not a capable husband or father just by completely neglecting the two of them. She may not admit it to your face, but she’s done with you.”
Leona watched something snap inside Marshal. He went dead silent for a moment before shaking his head and clearing his throat and then throwing a punch at Luke. In a matter of seconds, they were both on the ground in an attempt to better one another.
Joseph took his eyes off of the bartender once he realized what was going on, quickly going over to separate the two. He stopped Leona when she went over to try and help as well. “You and Samantha need to stay away, if anyone gets in the way then they’re just another target to the both of them.”
Cyrus and Horatio quickly went to help Joseph with restraining Luke, the three of them thinking Marshal would come to his senses quicker.
They were proven wrong when Marshal continued to try and get at Luke. Milo, Filip, and Ethan moved to restrain him and try to talk him down as Luke continued to taunt him.
The bartender left the bar with a baseball bat in hand to protect himself and announced to the group that he had called Luke’s superiors and they were on the way. He was clearly uncomfortable around the group and returned to his bar as soon as he made himself clear, though he continued to watch from there.
In that instant, Marshal stopped struggling with Milo, Filip, and Ethan. “It’s fine, I’m fine, we’re all cool here. I’m not going to start anything else until Isaac gets here.” The three shared a cautious look before Grady and Vincent put themselves between the two and allowed them to let go of Marshal.
The bartender turned his attention back to his customers once he convinced himself that Marshal had calmed down and wouldn’t cause a problem.
He walked around for a minute, putting plenty of distance between himself and Luke.
Samantha dropped her bow and arrows to the ground as soon as she realized Marshal’s intention of getting released. “Leona, grab him! He’s going for the bat!”
As soon as Samantha made the call, Marshal bound over the bar and took the bat before the bartender could grab it or Leona could grab him.
Leona noticed Milo moving out of the way and the people restraining Luke also backing off a bit. “Are you all really about to let him beat a restrained man?”
She attempted to go restrain him herself, but Milo grabbed her and pulled her away. “He’s deadest on ruining Luke and anyone who gets in his way. Luke has a chance since he’s enhanced, but he’d kill any of us for stepping in the way.”
Vincent and Grady stayed in the way once Marshal got close while Joseph, Cyrus, and Horatio let go of Luke. The five of them got out of the way once the were certain Luke was back up to fighting.
The bartender started rushing his customers out of the bar, trying to keep them safe and out of the way.
The group backed off as Marshal took a swing at Luke’s knee, which knocked him unstable and likely ruined the augmentation of his right leg. They found themselves putting more distance between themselves and the scene with each swing he took, an unspoken fear taking over each of them as they watched.
He kept swinging the bat at a different part of Luke’s body every time, eventually tossing it to the ground and crouching in front of Luke and pulling his head up to make him meet his eyes. “It’s a real shame that you won’t be in working order for a few more years now. I guess you won’t get the chance to fuck my wife after all.”
Joseph slowly started moving towards Marshal while Samantha moved towards the bat.
Milo took on distracting him so he didn’t think to grab the bat again. “Marshal, it’s over. Back off a little, he’s not going to get up right now.”
“I’m well aware of that.” Marshal stood back up and took a deep breath before turning to face the group. “I’m sure that seemed like overkill to all of you, but Joseph and Ethan can attest that Luke would have done the same to me. That man beat up on me for months while I was in the city whenever he felt like it just because he knew that I wasn’t going to let him lay his hands on Elizabeth. He beat up on Milo for two whole years because he wouldn’t sell out his entire group and for what he’s served us, he earned his spot right now.”
Leona looked to the ground, staring at her feet. “He tried to kill you back when we were locked in the room with Leah.”
The bar’s doors opened again, the sound of boots hurried into the main area before a man in a white suit with blond hair pushed through the group, stopping as soon as he saw Luke. He looked to Marshal before trying to shake off what he’d seen. “What is the meaning of this?”
“Isaac, it’s great to see you again.” Marshal faked a smile. “Before you go on about how I wasn’t justified in my actions, I want you to know that Luke has known our location for the past month and a half. He hasn’t said anything because he was attempting to work out a deal with Elizabeth. If the deal had gone through, he wouldn’t have said anything for a pretty long time to come.”
Isaac looked back to the group, a furious look on his now red face. “Can even one of you confirm this maniac’s story?”
Grady nodded, pulling the paper out of his pocket and handing it to Isaac. “That’s the paper that Luke gave to Elizabeth. That’s the current address and a little later than the time he had written down. There’s instructions for how she should dress on the back.”
Isaac flipped over the paper and then looked back at Marshal. “How can I be certain that this isn’t forged?”
“It has Onyx’s logo on it. It’s faded but it’s there.” Grady spoke up again, making Isaac put the paper under a light and inspect it.
Isaac confirmed the logo was there before looking over the group, then looking back at Marshal. “Do you understand the amount of damages you’ve caused?”
“I don’t expect you to repair them after learning about what he tried to do and his flat out lying to you for an entire month and a half. I’d say I did you a favor by damaging them beyond repair so you don’t have to disassemble the augmentations yourself.” Marshal crossed his arms.
“You’re both in the wrong, but I must confirm this for myself. Is Elizabeth here? What about your doctor?”
“Elizabeth isn’t with us, but why would Luke need a doctor?” Milo jumped into the conversation. “Marshal only destroyed the mechanical parts and I don’t think machines can bleed, therefore he doesn’t need a doctor.”
Isaac nodded slightly before crossing his arms. “All of you leave and stay gone. I’ll be dealing with Mr. Lowell on my own.”
The group looked among each other before collecting their stuff and following Marshal out.
Isaac kneeled next to Luke, quickly taking in the damage that Marshal had done. “Why did you let those fuckers go just like that?”
“Only six of the eight were present. You have one last chance to give up their location before I terminate your programs and your employment, am I understood?”
6.2
After Luke’s latest run-in with the Voyagers, Isaac threatened to terminate his employment on the spot, but decided against it.
That was until he talked it over with Zachary and they mutually agreed that it would be better to terminate Luke’s position. They claimed that Luke was a threat to them because he refused to give up a location he’d known for months.
Isaac ordered Amanda to repair Luke’s arms and legs just so they’d function normally, but to remove any features that had been added as part of his job.
Chelsea also had to talk to Luke before he left in order to erase his memories and insure that Amanda had done everything she needed to. He didn’t have much to say to her, just as he didn’t have much to say to Amanda.
Chelsea seemed upset, which told Luke that she didn’t agree with the decision but she couldn’t override it, meaning most of the higher ups agreed with it. “I’m sorry they’re doing this to you. There was really nothing I could do to help.”
“No offense, but I didn’t expect any less of a reaction from your dad. He has no reason to keep me around anymore and neither of us are benefitting from the things going on here.”
“What do you mean he has no reason to keep you around anymore? There’s definitely still a use for Underground Operations.”
“But not me specifically.” Luke crossed his arms. “This happened because Marshal chose an aggressive approach instead of a subtle one. If he had been subtle or the group showed any signs of going back into hiding, then I would be needed to track them down.”
Chelsea seemed a bit confused by the statement, stopping the process of erasing Luke’s memories. “I’m sorry, an aggressive approach? We weren’t told anything about that, only that your progress wasn’t ideal.”
Luke scoffed. “Not even man enough to tell the truth about why he’s terminating me.” He paused, contemplating on if he should tell Chelsea or not. “Don’t you find it a little odd that my limbs were completely trashed before Isaac decided to terminate me?” She nodded. “And he didn’t offer you any sort of explanation to that?” She shook her head. “My limbs were trashed because of Marshal Kennedy. I don’t know what you remember from your week with the Voyagers, but they’re picking battles over demonstrations.”
“Did you fight back?”
“A bit in the beginning.” Luke sighed, looking to the ground. “I was in the wrong and even if I have no respect for him, I understand why he was so pissed off. That’s all I have to say on it.”
Chelsea resumed the process of erasing Luke’s memory, paying more attention to things as they passed on the screen. She grabbed her radio, hitting the button. “Amanda, I need you to come finish the process. An emergency came up.”
Joseph Duke
The group seemed to be torn in two over what Marshal had done to Luke.
The people closer to him justified it and claimed it was what Luke had coming, even though Luke didn’t put up much of a fight at the bar. Most of the people who were there claimed the Marshal had gone overboard.
Joseph and Milo were undecided on it and while Alyssa continued to claim that she agreed with what Marshal had done, there were times she didn’t seem certain of it.
Marshal himself stayed quiet about it, though he very clearly felt no remorse for what he had done.
Joseph could tell when someone was coming around based on Riley’s reaction. That, coupled with the tension in the group, made him panic as someone pulled up to the area that the group was staying in.
That panic didn’t ease when he saw it was Chelsea Hampton. Francine said she had been around the group while he and Ethan were in quarantine and that she had a connection with Elizabeth.
They could only guess that Elizabeth wasn’t why Chelsea was around today when she walked right past Elizabeth and confronted Marshal. “You need to explain to me what happened last night. Where do you get off attacking Onyx officials for no reason when you know very well that they’re just waiting to execute you?”
“No reason?” Marshal dismissed Greg, who had pulled a gun on Chelsea. “Chelsea, you have access to Elizabeth’s memories and relationships since the day she was born, do I honestly seem like the type of person to attack without provocation? In fact, you know me personally.”
“I met you a year ago and apparently things have changed. This isn’t even the first time you attacked Luke specifically.”
He looked over the group and noticed their stillness as they watched, sighing before stopping his eyes on Elizabeth. “I’m sorry, I have no choice now.” He briefly looked at Milo before looking back to Chelsea. “In the two years Milo was there, Luke attacked him countless times because he refused to give up information on the group. When I was in the city for five months, he beat up on me every single time he saw me. Luke’s got his own history of unprovoked violence.” While he was normally pretty collected, Chelsea seemed to intimidate him a bit. “Luke knew of our location for a month and a half and never said a thing to Onyx. You already know that, but he would never tell you why he didn’t tell. Luke tried to set up a little proposition with Elizabeth where he would stay quiet about our location if she started an affair with him. When we went to the bar in her place, he just kept pushing it and I couldn’t handle it.”
Chelsea took on a look of disgust before shaking it off. “Is there anyone who can back that up?”
He nodded. “Milo, Joseph, Grady, Ethan, Leona, Samantha, Vincent, Horatio, Filip, Cyrus, and Elizabeth.”
The people listed agreed before the group went silent, Alyssa breaking the silence. “We were told about how Marshal attacked Luke, but we weren’t given a reason. Milo told me what was going on before they left yesterday and that Elizabeth didn’t want anybody to know.”
“That makes no sense.” Chelsea seemed to grow defensive. “Luke can’t stand Elizabeth and he’s completely aware that she’s married, why would he try to spark up a relationship with her?”
Alyssa stood off the ground, dusting off her pants. “Because she’s the only other woman in this world that shares the same gene as you.” She quickly started talking again when she saw Chelsea getting ready to challenge her on it. “I worked at Onyx, had access to records that the Voyagers have no idea even exist, and knew Luke personally. I’m completely aware that he knows about the gene and that your father has been planning your marriage to Georgie for a lot longer than you’re aware of.”
Most of the group didn’t know who Georgie Kenny was, but the ones who did know didn’t have a good opinion on him. Chelsea seemed a bit unsettled by the revelation. “My dad always told me that you weren’t very interested in the personal matters of Onyx. Were you looking through the confidential records the whole time?”
She nodded. “I wasn’t the only one either. In fact, I’ve got a suspicion that the woman who taught me is the same one that was copying the records and nearly got Elizabeth busted for that.”
Chelsea turned to Elizabeth. “That wasn’t you?” She shook her head. “Luke swore up and down that it was you.”
“If he had given me a minute to explain myself, I would have told him that I was outright stealing the records instead of copying them. And since we’re snitching on each other, Leona has them now and only one of them is a copy because someone else left the copy in the records.” She paused. “Actually, the first time you and I died at the bar was among those records. That bar has cameras, so I’d recommend you check the records of last night before your dad gets rid of the evidence.”
Joseph noticed Samantha and Cecilia sharing a look before Cecilia nodded and cleared her throat. “Your name is Chelsea, right?” Chelsea turned her attention to Cecilia and nodded. “I can’t say I know you personally, but you came here acting like you didn’t know what happened with Luke. What did he tell you?”
“That’s not important.” Chelsea seemed to lower her guard. “I just need to know the truth.”
Alyssa sat back down and Marshal motioned over to Grady. “Grady and Elizabeth have been telling the exact same story. Before you even accuse them of lying about it, I want you to recall your time here and how they interacted. They hated each other and couldn’t even stand ten minutes in the room together. They still don’t like each other so they wouldn’t spend the countless hours together that they would need to make a static story.”
Chelsea looked over to Grady, waiting for his explanation. “Back when I was drinking more, I’d follow Elizabeth around just to see if she would make a mistake and anything major, I would tell the group. She went out onto the trail while Kyle had the baby and I followed about twenty feet behind her. I only stopped walking when I realized I was getting closer to her and there wasn’t much distance between us, so I hid and tried ro figure out what she was doing. I eventually saw Luke and heard him talking about how he knew where we were and then he gave her a letter. I honestly didn’t believe that Luke was here myself until she asked me if I knew the next morning.”
“There’s an entirely different problem in what you just told me.” Chelsea paused. “First, what do you earn out of her doing something wrong? Second, where is the letter?”
“Grady should have it. He’s the one who had it at the bar last night.” Leona finally spoke up, Chelsea’s attention not breaking from Grady.
He checked his pockets before seeming to grow a bit nervous. “I know I had it, I just don’t know where I put it.”
Cyrus looked frustrated as he quickly remembered what happened to the note. “You gave it to Isaac when he showed up and nobody thought to get it back.”
Grady nodded, putting on a nervous smile as Chelsea’s glare stayed on him. “There’s your short answer, it’s either with your dad or still in the bar.”
“That’s not what I wanted to hear.”
“Can’t you just ask your dad for it?” It was starting to become clear that while Marshal and the people from quarantine were intimidated by Chelsea, Grady was downright afraid of her.
Elizabeth adjusted her hold on the baby before she reached out to Chelsea, just barely touching her wrist. As soon as Elizabeth touched Chelsea’s wrist, the three of them acted as if there was an electric shock before they collapsed on the ground.
Alyssa and Horatio quickly rushed over while Marshal took the baby, whispering something to them and then handing Whitlock to Alyssa. He and Horatio picked up Chelsea and Elizabeth before they went down the camping trail, Alyssa following after them.
Alyssa Kowalska
Marshal told them that they shouldn’t handle what was happening in front of the group. He only said that because he was almost certain that it was something that had to do with the gene.
They went to the nearest bench on the trail before Marshal and Horatio put Chelsea and Elizabeth down, Marshal taking the baby to allow Alyssa to look over the women.
Alyssa already knew Whitlock and Elizabeth were in pretty good health and she could only assume that Chelsea was as well, which pointed to it being something related to the gene.
The three of them were completely still and quiet, their bodies barely showing any reaction to anything Alyssa did.
It was only in the second time she was examining Elizabeth that she noticed something. “Marshal, does Elizabeth normally flinch when someone touches her neck?”
“Yeah, she’s always been like that.”
Alyssa walked over to him and touched the baby’s neck, getting no response. She tried finding a spot until she put him on his stomach and touched his back, immediately getting a response. “Horatio, look over Chelsea and try to find a spot that provokes a physical reaction. I’ve got something I want to try on her and Elizabeth before I try it on the baby.”
Horatio did as he was told and went to look over Chelsea while Alyssa returned to Elizabeth. She already knew Marshal wasn’t going to like what she was doing, but she felt it was the only way.
She put her hand around Elizabeth’s neck and started pushing down, getting an immediate reaction. Her eyes flew open and she quickly grabbed Alyssa’s arm, forcing it away from her.
Alyssa quickly went to apologize before she looked into Elizabeth’s eyes and noted something. “Elizabeth’s eyes aren’t blue, right?”
“She and Whitlock both have green eyes.” Marshal looked into Elizabeth’s eyes, freezing for a moment. “Chelsea has blue eyes.”
Elizabeth seemed pretty dazed until she saw Chelsea laying on the bench. She raised her arms to look over them, her eyes stopping once she saw the ring on her finger. “What happened?” She sounded as if she had trouble speaking.
“I’ll tell you once you tell me your name.”
“Chelsea…” She pointed at Chelsea’s body. “That’s my body, but I’m in Elizabeth’s right now. Now explain to me what sparked this so we can fix it.”
Alyssa took the baby from Marshal, applying a bit of pressure to the spot on his back. She stopped once his eyes opened, though the color of his were the normal green.
“Before we do, I need to know about any sensitive spots on your body so we can wake up whoever’s in it.”
She sighed, getting up and kneeling next to the bench. “I don’t know, just let me figure it out.”
She eventually found that covering her mouth woke up whoever was inside. Alyssa noted their green eyes. “If I’m not mistaken, the three of you switched bodies.”
Horatio seemed to study whoever was in Chelsea’s body. “I’m thinking Whitlock got Chelsea and Elizabeth got Whitlock. Chelsea had a bit of a struggle talking at first, but whoever is in Chelsea isn’t even trying.”
“Agreed. That tells us that they’re restricted to whatever the original owner is capable of.” Alyssa crossed her arms, her eyes focusing on Whitlock. “If Elizabeth is really in Whitlock’s body, I’m almost certain she would have started talking by now if she could.”
“If I can intervene, I’m pretty certain the switch happened because Elizabeth grabbed Chelsea. They collapsed right after that.” Marshal went to Elizabeth, handing her the baby. He seemed to pay a lot of attention to Chelsea while he was there. “Horatio is definitely right about who is in which body, though.”
“We need to fix this before we go on.” Elizabeth reached out to Chelsea once again, grabbing her wrist before they blacked out again.
Alyssa, Horatio, and Marshal went through provoking reactions from them again and verifying they were each in their own bodies before anything else.
Whitlock immediately started crying before Marshal took him.
Chelsea didn’t move from her spot on the bench. “I sincerely hope he’s not in as much pain as I am after that.”
Elizabeth gave a nervous chuckle, sitting up. “I can feel myself on the edge of weaponization. Let’s not do that again.”
“From what I remember, something like that was never supposed to happen.” Alyssa approached the two, her vision going between them. “I vaguely recall some details on the gene and David requested that there would be no body swapping, Isaac even agreed to it.”
“So I believe the question now is whether the geneticist or the gene itself is going rogue.” Horatio backed away Elizabeth and Chelsea, looking to be a bit afraid.
“The geneticist is probably the least likely person to turn her back on Isaac and that’s saying a lot since our entire group is made up of people who’ve turned their backs on Isaac.” Marshal seemed a bit distracted with trying to calm the baby down, but he was obviously still paying attention.
Alyssa and Chelsea both acted as if they agreed with him. “The gene itself has been in a relatively idle state for the past twenty-four years and Chelsea and Elizabeth had no control over it by the time Whitlock was added into the mix, so I’m almost certain that the gene is at fault. That’s a problem, though. It’s only going to become more unpredictable and the only way to stop it is by sending all three of them back to the city. That’s not really an option for Whitlock and Elizabeth, so the only option is to just let the gene run itself.”
The option didn’t sit well with anyone, but Alyssa could already predict the effect taking Elizabeth and Whitlock away would have on the group. There wasn’t much left to say about it, so they made sure the three were okay before heading back to camp and allowing Chelsea to leave.
Things went silent with the group after Chelsea left, but it was clear that most of them had something on their minds.
Marshal kept hold of the baby, only passing him to Elizabeth when he got up to address the group. He didn’t look happy and his voice sounded pretty drained when he spoke. “First, I want to issue an apology to the group. I risked the safety of every single one of you over a personal matter. That’s not going to happen again and things are going to be different in my leadership style as well as what I expect from all of you and what you can expect from me.” Alyssa noticed that Leona and Joseph, the two people who Marshal needed to consult on decisions, looked confused. “I’m splitting the group into two. Most of you will be going back to the motel with Leona and Joseph, a select few that I’ve already picked out will be going back to the bunker with me.”
“And what’s making you come up with that decision?” Francine was quick to call out the decision, proving that it didn’t sit well with her.
“Pierre is due to come back any day now and if he goes back to an empty motel and bunker, he’s going to mark us as inactive. That means that even if we find a way to prove to him that we’re still around, we don’t get the backup we need from him later on.” He paused. “Chelsea showing up is proof enough that we’re not safe here. She may be neutral with us, but she very well could be the only one who is.”
Ethan didn’t seem to buy the story, but his dismissing it was to be expected. “Luke showed up at the bunker last time we went there, he went to the motel, so how are any of those places safer than what we have right now?”
“That’s the thing, we have exactly nothing right now. Most of our stuff is still in the motel and we’re due to run out of supplies this week so we’re going to have to go back there anyways.”
Alyssa could tell most of the group didn’t support the decision, but she had a feeling that the people she returned with were expecting her opinion on it.
A choice here decided Alyssa would back up the decision.
6.3
Marshal could already tell that a number of people were turning to Alyssa for an answer on the decision.
She seemed a bit conflicted before a smile came across her face. “The way you’re telling it to us really makes it seem like you’re not giving us a choice and while I’m pretty sure you’re not, I already know this is for the good of the group. Pierre’s going to be upset about Rocco not being around so we really shouldn’t test his patience.”
The rest of the looked to ease up before ultimately agreeing it would be for the better. They spent one last night out in the woods before going back to the motel.
Alyssa offered to stay at the motel with the people from quarantine while Milo decided to go to the motel to keep Kimber and Jude with familiar faces. Leah went to the motel as she believed Milo would need more help than Elizabeth currently did.
Lecia and Morgan went to the motel after Francine and Gregory went to the bunker so Greg could continue to train with Marshal. Joseph also went to the motel to help from an administrative position. Leona went to the motel the remain with her people, leaving the number of people at the bunker to be slim.
Getting the bunker back in working order was a task that drained Elizabeth’s time and energy for the first three days, forcing her to leave Whitlock with Kyle since Marshal spent the daytime out with Greg.
Most nights he came back after dinner to find that she was already asleep, sometimes in the common room or sometimes in the lab.
Pierre came around a week after the group split up and while he didn’t say much to Marshal, he was visibly unimpressed with what was going on. Marie wasn’t with him, which took away Elizabeth’s chance to clear Ethan’s name.
There was a noticeable tension between Pierre and most of the group.
Kyle didn’t particularly like him over a lecture he gave Elizabeth over her work and Whitlock. “I swear you people are doing everything wrong on purpose. Bringing a child into this life is one of the worst things you could have done because not only are you taking his life before he can start it, but you’re making yourself a complete liability to the group and setting them up for failure.”
What surprised is Kyle is that Elizabeth took the lecture without saying a word. It upset her, there was no doubt about that, but she never voiced her opinion on it.
That’s what made Kyle realize how passive Elizabeth actually was. Milo used to talk about how Elizabeth had changed since he had disappeared and after hearing how the others talked about her, Kyle started to understand more about her, though he couldn’t tell if she was actually happy in her current life or if she was just trying to convince everyone else that she was fine.
The thought was something that bothered him until Marshal and Gregory came back to the bunker during dinner one night. Kyle overheard him talking about how an incident with Greg ended up almost getting him stabbed.
She looked concerned about it and Kyle noticed that Marshal had to calm her down a little before she would change her entire attitude. She seemed genuinely happy in comparison to how she was before he returned.
It almost reminded him of Dawn.
Dawn cared about their family more than she did anything else and while she was generally pretty reserved, she didn’t let anyone tell her how to handle her marriage or her son.
Kyle saw that Elizabeth was putting her family life first, but he couldn’t say the same for Marshal. He had some doubts about what really spurred Marshal to attack Luke.
Everyone who was there said it Luke taunting him about Elizabeth, but he always felt something was off about it. He felt it was more personal than that based on how the group mentioned how badly Luke and Marshal got along in the city.
Later that night, Kyle stopped Marshal when he was on his own. “You need to do yourself a favor and pay more attention to your wife. She’s trying her best with all she has, but she needs you to be around every now and again.” He looked annoyed by what Kyle had to say, though he didn’t say much about it and he probably wouldn’t since he knew better than to start something with Kyle.
Marshal Kennedy
With all that had been going on with Pierre, Gregory, and the group splitting up, Elizabeth and Whitlock had become a second priority.
It wasn’t because he didn’t care, it was just because he knew that they could handle themselves better than any others in the group. The two meant the world to Marshal, but he knew Joseph had high expectations for him and that he could very well lose favor among the group if he put his personal life above the work that had to be done.
It was always a little embarrassing whenever Leah would ask how they were and Marshal couldn’t give a certain answer because he hadn’t seen them since the morning before.
Whenever he came back to the bunker, he’d grab something small to eat before getting Whitlock from his dad and putting him to bed. He’d only wake Elizabeth up to have her move from wherever she fell asleep once the baby was asleep so she wouldn’t have to worry about it.
That was what happened every single night. Nothing changed and nothing was expected to change.
The morning after he was able to go home early, he got a call from the motel about a minor issue with a tool.
It was about the time he would be getting up to get the day started anyway, so he decided to start getting ready like he normally did until Elizabeth woke up.
“You’re already leaving?” She kept her face buried under the blanket to avoid seeing light from the lamp that Marshal had turned on.
“It’s only like twenty minutes earlier than when I usually leave.”
“And yet you’ll find a way to stay twenty minutes later tonight.” She sounded upset by the topic.
He sighed, knowing she was more than likely right about that. He took his spot in bed next to her when she uncovered her face. “I don’t like it anymore than you do, believe me.”
“Then stay a little longer.” She turned over to face him. “What do they even need at the motel that can’t wait twenty minutes?”
“They said it was a minor problem with-“
“A minor problem, Marshal. You don’t need to leave so early just because of a minor problem when there’s at least forty people there that can look at whatever’s causing the problem.”
Marshal already knew that she was dead set on having him stay a little longer. He didn’t know if Pierre knew about the motel calling, but he did know it would be an issue with Pierre if he didn’t immediately go to handle whatever was happening at the motel.
[Stay with Elizabeth a little longer]
[Insist on going to the motel]
Elizabeth looked at the letter in her hand before offering it to Grady. “I want to tell Marshal myself, you get together a group you see fit and I’ll have him talk to you when we’re done.”
Grady looked at the paper, hesitating on taking it. “Are you sure?” She nodded, keeping the letter in place.
He took it after she confirmed that it was what she wanted to do, then went on his own way. She cupped her hands as she watched him go to the first person he saw, which had been Leona.
She looked over the group before locking eyes with Whitlock while he was attempting to pick himself up off the ground, quickly reaffirming her that she had made the right choice.
As soon as she tried to remember where she had last seen Marshal, someone took a seat next to her and put one of their hands on top of her hands that had been cupped together. “You’re nervous, what’s going on?”
While Elizabeth was always hesitant to call out any of his moods, Marshal would say it as he saw it. He would always say that the easiest way to fix any problems with his observation was to be honest with her and have her correct him if he was wrong.
“Elizabeth?” He sounded concerned, though he normally did. The leadership role was something he was decent at, but something that he hated. Elizabeth knew it stressed him out more than anything and that telling him about Luke would just add another problem.
She nearly told him it was nothing until she noticed Grady and Leona watching her impatiently. He knew she hadn’t said anything yet and he wasn’t going to take his eyes off of her until she did.
Elizabeth got and dusted herself off. “I need to talk to you. Away from the group, preferably.”
He seemed to only get more nervous himself before getting up and following her down a camping trail. He waited until they had gotten a fair distance from the group before saying anything. “Is everything alright?”
She stopped at one of the picnic benches set up along the trail, taking a seat and waiting for him to sit before she could even think about what to say. “You’re not going to like what I have to say and you’ve got every right to be upset about it. I can just hope that’ll you believe me since I left my proof with the group.”
Things between the two of them had been difficult at times since Marshal had assumed the current position he had. They both understood that it was the lack of time he had for Eris was the reason Joseph didn’t do much while he was the leader, which is why they had been trying to make things work. “Elizabeth, you’ve got no reason to lie to me.”
She nodded. “I know, I just wanted to be sure that you knew that.” Elizabeth already knew she couldn’t put it off much longer without raising his suspicions anymore. “It’s about Luke. He’s been tracking us since we left the motel and knows where we are.”
“How do you know that?” She could already tell by his voice that he was a bit surprised by what she had said and that there was no way he would be prepared for the full truth.
“Because he reached out to me on one of the days that you and Leona went back to the motel. Your dad had the baby and my mom was with Milo, so I was alone and he approached me the second I stepped out of sight from the rest of the group. He told me that if started an affair with him then he’d keep quiet about where the group was as long as we were seeing each other, gave me an address, and then told me I had until Alyssa came back to decide.” She paused to try and decide where to go from there. “Grady overheard it and he swore to me that he’d keep quiet about it until I made a decision.”
The silence she got in response was gut wrenching to her. For once, she didn’t know what to expect from him and he wasn’t giving any indication of what he was feeling. “Why are you telling me this?”
“Just so I can be honest with you.” She took a deep breath, looking at the trees ahead of her. “I’m not going to do it, obviously, but Grady is getting a group together to confront him at the address tonight.”
“Where is it?”
“The bar that has one less bouncer because of you.” She chuckled, trying to calm him down.
She realized her attempt fell flat when she didn’t get a response out of him. “Thanks for telling me.”
He got up and left without another word, heading away from where the group was set up.
Leona
Grady had told her what happened with Elizabeth and told her that he urgently needed her help setting up a group of specific people before nightfall.
She went around to a few of the people he’d named and recruited their help while he got the rest of the group himself.
They noticed Elizabeth and Marshal left the area before to sun started setting, only for Elizabeth to return on her own. She said she couldn’t tell them where Marshal was because she didn’t know and that they would be better off going on their own if they wanted to make it on time.
Grady didn’t like the idea of going without Marshal, so he protested and said they would wait another half hour.
Once he did show up, Grady told him about the plan the group had been informed of and left the rest up to him.
They had to take the truck and the van since the entire group wouldn’t fit in just one of the vehicles, but that didn’t bother anybody.
Despite leaving late, they got to the bar early and tried to get in without raising any alarms since most of them were known and the bartender would be the first to alert Luke and subsequently, Onyx.
The ones who weren’t known to the bartender went in first and opened a door around back to allow the others in without having to pass the bartender.
They waited for a bit before Luke showed up and ordered his drink, heading to his seat. The Voyagers who had weapons quickly took a hiding spot and unholstered their weapons.
The group agreed that it was within Marshal’s rights to be the one to talk to Luke, though they all knew that t would be more than just a talk.
Leona and Milo were supposed to keep things as civil as possible, which loosely meant they needed to prevent any casualties. They were also ordered to stay close to Marshal so they could listen in and provide assistance if things went south.
Marshal took a seat on the stool next to Luke, who refused to look at him. “You know, it’s pretty funny. You’re the same man who dismissed a bartender’s claims of me being a Voyager because I punched him over Elizabeth. I’d almost say it’s a coincidence, but I don’t believe in those.”
“How fucking dense do you have to be to show up here?” Luke took a drink before setting his cup back in the table. “If you need a reminder, you’re wanted for multiple murders of civilians and Onyx officials. This is a public building and I’m an Onyx representative.”
“Since we’re reminding each other of the obvious, you’re walking a thin line between treason against Onyx and attempted extortion. I may have committed the heavier crimes in terms of legality but you’ve committed the worst ones in Isaac’s books.” Luke didn’t respond, prompting Marshal to push more. “You don’t give a shit about what Isaac thinks, that’s no secret, but what about Chelsea? What would she think of you trying to seduce a married woman in one of the most fucked up ways you can?”
Luke took another drink before getting out his seat, Marshal quickly following his lead. Luke quickly scanned the bar before snickering. “You really felt the need to bring eleven other people over this?” He shook his head and sighed. “I’ll spell it out for you since you really don’t get it, she doesn’t love you. She was using you to have a kid, she got that and you even proved to her that you’re not a capable husband or father just by completely neglecting the two of them. She may not admit it to your face, but she’s done with you.”
Leona watched something snap inside Marshal. He went dead silent for a moment before shaking his head and clearing his throat and then throwing a punch at Luke. In a matter of seconds, they were both on the ground in an attempt to better one another.
Joseph took his eyes off of the bartender once he realized what was going on, quickly going over to separate the two. He stopped Leona when she went over to try and help as well. “You and Samantha need to stay away, if anyone gets in the way then they’re just another target to the both of them.”
Cyrus and Horatio quickly went to help Joseph with restraining Luke, the three of them thinking Marshal would come to his senses quicker.
They were proven wrong when Marshal continued to try and get at Luke. Milo, Filip, and Ethan moved to restrain him and try to talk him down as Luke continued to taunt him.
The bartender left the bar with a baseball bat in hand to protect himself and announced to the group that he had called Luke’s superiors and they were on the way. He was clearly uncomfortable around the group and returned to his bar as soon as he made himself clear, though he continued to watch from there.
In that instant, Marshal stopped struggling with Milo, Filip, and Ethan. “It’s fine, I’m fine, we’re all cool here. I’m not going to start anything else until Isaac gets here.” The three shared a cautious look before Grady and Vincent put themselves between the two and allowed them to let go of Marshal.
The bartender turned his attention back to his customers once he convinced himself that Marshal had calmed down and wouldn’t cause a problem.
He walked around for a minute, putting plenty of distance between himself and Luke.
Samantha dropped her bow and arrows to the ground as soon as she realized Marshal’s intention of getting released. “Leona, grab him! He’s going for the bat!”
As soon as Samantha made the call, Marshal bound over the bar and took the bat before the bartender could grab it or Leona could grab him.
Leona noticed Milo moving out of the way and the people restraining Luke also backing off a bit. “Are you all really about to let him beat a restrained man?”
She attempted to go restrain him herself, but Milo grabbed her and pulled her away. “He’s deadest on ruining Luke and anyone who gets in his way. Luke has a chance since he’s enhanced, but he’d kill any of us for stepping in the way.”
Vincent and Grady stayed in the way once Marshal got close while Joseph, Cyrus, and Horatio let go of Luke. The five of them got out of the way once the were certain Luke was back up to fighting.
The bartender started rushing his customers out of the bar, trying to keep them safe and out of the way.
The group backed off as Marshal took a swing at Luke’s knee, which knocked him unstable and likely ruined the augmentation of his right leg. They found themselves putting more distance between themselves and the scene with each swing he took, an unspoken fear taking over each of them as they watched.
He kept swinging the bat at a different part of Luke’s body every time, eventually tossing it to the ground and crouching in front of Luke and pulling his head up to make him meet his eyes. “It’s a real shame that you won’t be in working order for a few more years now. I guess you won’t get the chance to fuck my wife after all.”
Joseph slowly started moving towards Marshal while Samantha moved towards the bat.
Milo took on distracting him so he didn’t think to grab the bat again. “Marshal, it’s over. Back off a little, he’s not going to get up right now.”
“I’m well aware of that.” Marshal stood back up and took a deep breath before turning to face the group. “I’m sure that seemed like overkill to all of you, but Joseph and Ethan can attest that Luke would have done the same to me. That man beat up on me for months while I was in the city whenever he felt like it just because he knew that I wasn’t going to let him lay his hands on Elizabeth. He beat up on Milo for two whole years because he wouldn’t sell out his entire group and for what he’s served us, he earned his spot right now.”
Leona looked to the ground, staring at her feet. “He tried to kill you back when we were locked in the room with Leah.”
The bar’s doors opened again, the sound of boots hurried into the main area before a man in a white suit with blond hair pushed through the group, stopping as soon as he saw Luke. He looked to Marshal before trying to shake off what he’d seen. “What is the meaning of this?”
“Isaac, it’s great to see you again.” Marshal faked a smile. “Before you go on about how I wasn’t justified in my actions, I want you to know that Luke has known our location for the past month and a half. He hasn’t said anything because he was attempting to work out a deal with Elizabeth. If the deal had gone through, he wouldn’t have said anything for a pretty long time to come.”
Isaac looked back to the group, a furious look on his now red face. “Can even one of you confirm this maniac’s story?”
Grady nodded, pulling the paper out of his pocket and handing it to Isaac. “That’s the paper that Luke gave to Elizabeth. That’s the current address and a little later than the time he had written down. There’s instructions for how she should dress on the back.”
Isaac flipped over the paper and then looked back at Marshal. “How can I be certain that this isn’t forged?”
“It has Onyx’s logo on it. It’s faded but it’s there.” Grady spoke up again, making Isaac put the paper under a light and inspect it.
Isaac confirmed the logo was there before looking over the group, then looking back at Marshal. “Do you understand the amount of damages you’ve caused?”
“I don’t expect you to repair them after learning about what he tried to do and his flat out lying to you for an entire month and a half. I’d say I did you a favor by damaging them beyond repair so you don’t have to disassemble the augmentations yourself.” Marshal crossed his arms.
“You’re both in the wrong, but I must confirm this for myself. Is Elizabeth here? What about your doctor?”
“Elizabeth isn’t with us, but why would Luke need a doctor?” Milo jumped into the conversation. “Marshal only destroyed the mechanical parts and I don’t think machines can bleed, therefore he doesn’t need a doctor.”
Isaac nodded slightly before crossing his arms. “All of you leave and stay gone. I’ll be dealing with Mr. Lowell on my own.”
The group looked among each other before collecting their stuff and following Marshal out.
Isaac kneeled next to Luke, quickly taking in the damage that Marshal had done. “Why did you let those fuckers go just like that?”
“Only six of the eight were present. You have one last chance to give up their location before I terminate your programs and your employment, am I understood?”
6.2
After Luke’s latest run-in with the Voyagers, Isaac threatened to terminate his employment on the spot, but decided against it.
That was until he talked it over with Zachary and they mutually agreed that it would be better to terminate Luke’s position. They claimed that Luke was a threat to them because he refused to give up a location he’d known for months.
Isaac ordered Amanda to repair Luke’s arms and legs just so they’d function normally, but to remove any features that had been added as part of his job.
Chelsea also had to talk to Luke before he left in order to erase his memories and insure that Amanda had done everything she needed to. He didn’t have much to say to her, just as he didn’t have much to say to Amanda.
Chelsea seemed upset, which told Luke that she didn’t agree with the decision but she couldn’t override it, meaning most of the higher ups agreed with it. “I’m sorry they’re doing this to you. There was really nothing I could do to help.”
“No offense, but I didn’t expect any less of a reaction from your dad. He has no reason to keep me around anymore and neither of us are benefitting from the things going on here.”
“What do you mean he has no reason to keep you around anymore? There’s definitely still a use for Underground Operations.”
“But not me specifically.” Luke crossed his arms. “This happened because Marshal chose an aggressive approach instead of a subtle one. If he had been subtle or the group showed any signs of going back into hiding, then I would be needed to track them down.”
Chelsea seemed a bit confused by the statement, stopping the process of erasing Luke’s memories. “I’m sorry, an aggressive approach? We weren’t told anything about that, only that your progress wasn’t ideal.”
Luke scoffed. “Not even man enough to tell the truth about why he’s terminating me.” He paused, contemplating on if he should tell Chelsea or not. “Don’t you find it a little odd that my limbs were completely trashed before Isaac decided to terminate me?” She nodded. “And he didn’t offer you any sort of explanation to that?” She shook her head. “My limbs were trashed because of Marshal Kennedy. I don’t know what you remember from your week with the Voyagers, but they’re picking battles over demonstrations.”
“Did you fight back?”
“A bit in the beginning.” Luke sighed, looking to the ground. “I was in the wrong and even if I have no respect for him, I understand why he was so pissed off. That’s all I have to say on it.”
Chelsea resumed the process of erasing Luke’s memory, paying more attention to things as they passed on the screen. She grabbed her radio, hitting the button. “Amanda, I need you to come finish the process. An emergency came up.”
Joseph Duke
The group seemed to be torn in two over what Marshal had done to Luke.
The people closer to him justified it and claimed it was what Luke had coming, even though Luke didn’t put up much of a fight at the bar. Most of the people who were there claimed the Marshal had gone overboard.
Joseph and Milo were undecided on it and while Alyssa continued to claim that she agreed with what Marshal had done, there were times she didn’t seem certain of it.
Marshal himself stayed quiet about it, though he very clearly felt no remorse for what he had done.
Joseph could tell when someone was coming around based on Riley’s reaction. That, coupled with the tension in the group, made him panic as someone pulled up to the area that the group was staying in.
That panic didn’t ease when he saw it was Chelsea Hampton. Francine said she had been around the group while he and Ethan were in quarantine and that she had a connection with Elizabeth.
They could only guess that Elizabeth wasn’t why Chelsea was around today when she walked right past Elizabeth and confronted Marshal. “You need to explain to me what happened last night. Where do you get off attacking Onyx officials for no reason when you know very well that they’re just waiting to execute you?”
“No reason?” Marshal dismissed Greg, who had pulled a gun on Chelsea. “Chelsea, you have access to Elizabeth’s memories and relationships since the day she was born, do I honestly seem like the type of person to attack without provocation? In fact, you know me personally.”
“I met you a year ago and apparently things have changed. This isn’t even the first time you attacked Luke specifically.”
He looked over the group and noticed their stillness as they watched, sighing before stopping his eyes on Elizabeth. “I’m sorry, I have no choice now.” He briefly looked at Milo before looking back to Chelsea. “In the two years Milo was there, Luke attacked him countless times because he refused to give up information on the group. When I was in the city for five months, he beat up on me every single time he saw me. Luke’s got his own history of unprovoked violence.” While he was normally pretty collected, Chelsea seemed to intimidate him a bit. “Luke knew of our location for a month and a half and never said a thing to Onyx. You already know that, but he would never tell you why he didn’t tell. Luke tried to set up a little proposition with Elizabeth where he would stay quiet about our location if she started an affair with him. When we went to the bar in her place, he just kept pushing it and I couldn’t handle it.”
Chelsea took on a look of disgust before shaking it off. “Is there anyone who can back that up?”
He nodded. “Milo, Joseph, Grady, Ethan, Leona, Samantha, Vincent, Horatio, Filip, Cyrus, and Elizabeth.”
The people listed agreed before the group went silent, Alyssa breaking the silence. “We were told about how Marshal attacked Luke, but we weren’t given a reason. Milo told me what was going on before they left yesterday and that Elizabeth didn’t want anybody to know.”
“That makes no sense.” Chelsea seemed to grow defensive. “Luke can’t stand Elizabeth and he’s completely aware that she’s married, why would he try to spark up a relationship with her?”
Alyssa stood off the ground, dusting off her pants. “Because she’s the only other woman in this world that shares the same gene as you.” She quickly started talking again when she saw Chelsea getting ready to challenge her on it. “I worked at Onyx, had access to records that the Voyagers have no idea even exist, and knew Luke personally. I’m completely aware that he knows about the gene and that your father has been planning your marriage to Georgie for a lot longer than you’re aware of.”
Most of the group didn’t know who Georgie Kenny was, but the ones who did know didn’t have a good opinion on him. Chelsea seemed a bit unsettled by the revelation. “My dad always told me that you weren’t very interested in the personal matters of Onyx. Were you looking through the confidential records the whole time?”
She nodded. “I wasn’t the only one either. In fact, I’ve got a suspicion that the woman who taught me is the same one that was copying the records and nearly got Elizabeth busted for that.”
Chelsea turned to Elizabeth. “That wasn’t you?” She shook her head. “Luke swore up and down that it was you.”
“If he had given me a minute to explain myself, I would have told him that I was outright stealing the records instead of copying them. And since we’re snitching on each other, Leona has them now and only one of them is a copy because someone else left the copy in the records.” She paused. “Actually, the first time you and I died at the bar was among those records. That bar has cameras, so I’d recommend you check the records of last night before your dad gets rid of the evidence.”
Joseph noticed Samantha and Cecilia sharing a look before Cecilia nodded and cleared her throat. “Your name is Chelsea, right?” Chelsea turned her attention to Cecilia and nodded. “I can’t say I know you personally, but you came here acting like you didn’t know what happened with Luke. What did he tell you?”
“That’s not important.” Chelsea seemed to lower her guard. “I just need to know the truth.”
Alyssa sat back down and Marshal motioned over to Grady. “Grady and Elizabeth have been telling the exact same story. Before you even accuse them of lying about it, I want you to recall your time here and how they interacted. They hated each other and couldn’t even stand ten minutes in the room together. They still don’t like each other so they wouldn’t spend the countless hours together that they would need to make a static story.”
Chelsea looked over to Grady, waiting for his explanation. “Back when I was drinking more, I’d follow Elizabeth around just to see if she would make a mistake and anything major, I would tell the group. She went out onto the trail while Kyle had the baby and I followed about twenty feet behind her. I only stopped walking when I realized I was getting closer to her and there wasn’t much distance between us, so I hid and tried ro figure out what she was doing. I eventually saw Luke and heard him talking about how he knew where we were and then he gave her a letter. I honestly didn’t believe that Luke was here myself until she asked me if I knew the next morning.”
“There’s an entirely different problem in what you just told me.” Chelsea paused. “First, what do you earn out of her doing something wrong? Second, where is the letter?”
“Grady should have it. He’s the one who had it at the bar last night.” Leona finally spoke up, Chelsea’s attention not breaking from Grady.
He checked his pockets before seeming to grow a bit nervous. “I know I had it, I just don’t know where I put it.”
Cyrus looked frustrated as he quickly remembered what happened to the note. “You gave it to Isaac when he showed up and nobody thought to get it back.”
Grady nodded, putting on a nervous smile as Chelsea’s glare stayed on him. “There’s your short answer, it’s either with your dad or still in the bar.”
“That’s not what I wanted to hear.”
“Can’t you just ask your dad for it?” It was starting to become clear that while Marshal and the people from quarantine were intimidated by Chelsea, Grady was downright afraid of her.
Elizabeth adjusted her hold on the baby before she reached out to Chelsea, just barely touching her wrist. As soon as Elizabeth touched Chelsea’s wrist, the three of them acted as if there was an electric shock before they collapsed on the ground.
Alyssa and Horatio quickly rushed over while Marshal took the baby, whispering something to them and then handing Whitlock to Alyssa. He and Horatio picked up Chelsea and Elizabeth before they went down the camping trail, Alyssa following after them.
Alyssa Kowalska
Marshal told them that they shouldn’t handle what was happening in front of the group. He only said that because he was almost certain that it was something that had to do with the gene.
They went to the nearest bench on the trail before Marshal and Horatio put Chelsea and Elizabeth down, Marshal taking the baby to allow Alyssa to look over the women.
Alyssa already knew Whitlock and Elizabeth were in pretty good health and she could only assume that Chelsea was as well, which pointed to it being something related to the gene.
The three of them were completely still and quiet, their bodies barely showing any reaction to anything Alyssa did.
It was only in the second time she was examining Elizabeth that she noticed something. “Marshal, does Elizabeth normally flinch when someone touches her neck?”
“Yeah, she’s always been like that.”
Alyssa walked over to him and touched the baby’s neck, getting no response. She tried finding a spot until she put him on his stomach and touched his back, immediately getting a response. “Horatio, look over Chelsea and try to find a spot that provokes a physical reaction. I’ve got something I want to try on her and Elizabeth before I try it on the baby.”
Horatio did as he was told and went to look over Chelsea while Alyssa returned to Elizabeth. She already knew Marshal wasn’t going to like what she was doing, but she felt it was the only way.
She put her hand around Elizabeth’s neck and started pushing down, getting an immediate reaction. Her eyes flew open and she quickly grabbed Alyssa’s arm, forcing it away from her.
Alyssa quickly went to apologize before she looked into Elizabeth’s eyes and noted something. “Elizabeth’s eyes aren’t blue, right?”
“She and Whitlock both have green eyes.” Marshal looked into Elizabeth’s eyes, freezing for a moment. “Chelsea has blue eyes.”
Elizabeth seemed pretty dazed until she saw Chelsea laying on the bench. She raised her arms to look over them, her eyes stopping once she saw the ring on her finger. “What happened?” She sounded as if she had trouble speaking.
“I’ll tell you once you tell me your name.”
“Chelsea…” She pointed at Chelsea’s body. “That’s my body, but I’m in Elizabeth’s right now. Now explain to me what sparked this so we can fix it.”
Alyssa took the baby from Marshal, applying a bit of pressure to the spot on his back. She stopped once his eyes opened, though the color of his were the normal green.
“Before we do, I need to know about any sensitive spots on your body so we can wake up whoever’s in it.”
She sighed, getting up and kneeling next to the bench. “I don’t know, just let me figure it out.”
She eventually found that covering her mouth woke up whoever was inside. Alyssa noted their green eyes. “If I’m not mistaken, the three of you switched bodies.”
Horatio seemed to study whoever was in Chelsea’s body. “I’m thinking Whitlock got Chelsea and Elizabeth got Whitlock. Chelsea had a bit of a struggle talking at first, but whoever is in Chelsea isn’t even trying.”
“Agreed. That tells us that they’re restricted to whatever the original owner is capable of.” Alyssa crossed her arms, her eyes focusing on Whitlock. “If Elizabeth is really in Whitlock’s body, I’m almost certain she would have started talking by now if she could.”
“If I can intervene, I’m pretty certain the switch happened because Elizabeth grabbed Chelsea. They collapsed right after that.” Marshal went to Elizabeth, handing her the baby. He seemed to pay a lot of attention to Chelsea while he was there. “Horatio is definitely right about who is in which body, though.”
“We need to fix this before we go on.” Elizabeth reached out to Chelsea once again, grabbing her wrist before they blacked out again.
Alyssa, Horatio, and Marshal went through provoking reactions from them again and verifying they were each in their own bodies before anything else.
Whitlock immediately started crying before Marshal took him.
Chelsea didn’t move from her spot on the bench. “I sincerely hope he’s not in as much pain as I am after that.”
Elizabeth gave a nervous chuckle, sitting up. “I can feel myself on the edge of weaponization. Let’s not do that again.”
“From what I remember, something like that was never supposed to happen.” Alyssa approached the two, her vision going between them. “I vaguely recall some details on the gene and David requested that there would be no body swapping, Isaac even agreed to it.”
“So I believe the question now is whether the geneticist or the gene itself is going rogue.” Horatio backed away Elizabeth and Chelsea, looking to be a bit afraid.
“The geneticist is probably the least likely person to turn her back on Isaac and that’s saying a lot since our entire group is made up of people who’ve turned their backs on Isaac.” Marshal seemed a bit distracted with trying to calm the baby down, but he was obviously still paying attention.
Alyssa and Chelsea both acted as if they agreed with him. “The gene itself has been in a relatively idle state for the past twenty-four years and Chelsea and Elizabeth had no control over it by the time Whitlock was added into the mix, so I’m almost certain that the gene is at fault. That’s a problem, though. It’s only going to become more unpredictable and the only way to stop it is by sending all three of them back to the city. That’s not really an option for Whitlock and Elizabeth, so the only option is to just let the gene run itself.”
The option didn’t sit well with anyone, but Alyssa could already predict the effect taking Elizabeth and Whitlock away would have on the group. There wasn’t much left to say about it, so they made sure the three were okay before heading back to camp and allowing Chelsea to leave.
Things went silent with the group after Chelsea left, but it was clear that most of them had something on their minds.
Marshal kept hold of the baby, only passing him to Elizabeth when he got up to address the group. He didn’t look happy and his voice sounded pretty drained when he spoke. “First, I want to issue an apology to the group. I risked the safety of every single one of you over a personal matter. That’s not going to happen again and things are going to be different in my leadership style as well as what I expect from all of you and what you can expect from me.” Alyssa noticed that Leona and Joseph, the two people who Marshal needed to consult on decisions, looked confused. “I’m splitting the group into two. Most of you will be going back to the motel with Leona and Joseph, a select few that I’ve already picked out will be going back to the bunker with me.”
“And what’s making you come up with that decision?” Francine was quick to call out the decision, proving that it didn’t sit well with her.
“Pierre is due to come back any day now and if he goes back to an empty motel and bunker, he’s going to mark us as inactive. That means that even if we find a way to prove to him that we’re still around, we don’t get the backup we need from him later on.” He paused. “Chelsea showing up is proof enough that we’re not safe here. She may be neutral with us, but she very well could be the only one who is.”
Ethan didn’t seem to buy the story, but his dismissing it was to be expected. “Luke showed up at the bunker last time we went there, he went to the motel, so how are any of those places safer than what we have right now?”
“That’s the thing, we have exactly nothing right now. Most of our stuff is still in the motel and we’re due to run out of supplies this week so we’re going to have to go back there anyways.”
Alyssa could tell most of the group didn’t support the decision, but she had a feeling that the people she returned with were expecting her opinion on it.
A choice here decided Alyssa would back up the decision.
6.3
Marshal could already tell that a number of people were turning to Alyssa for an answer on the decision.
She seemed a bit conflicted before a smile came across her face. “The way you’re telling it to us really makes it seem like you’re not giving us a choice and while I’m pretty sure you’re not, I already know this is for the good of the group. Pierre’s going to be upset about Rocco not being around so we really shouldn’t test his patience.”
The rest of the looked to ease up before ultimately agreeing it would be for the better. They spent one last night out in the woods before going back to the motel.
Alyssa offered to stay at the motel with the people from quarantine while Milo decided to go to the motel to keep Kimber and Jude with familiar faces. Leah went to the motel as she believed Milo would need more help than Elizabeth currently did.
Lecia and Morgan went to the motel after Francine and Gregory went to the bunker so Greg could continue to train with Marshal. Joseph also went to the motel to help from an administrative position. Leona went to the motel the remain with her people, leaving the number of people at the bunker to be slim.
Getting the bunker back in working order was a task that drained Elizabeth’s time and energy for the first three days, forcing her to leave Whitlock with Kyle since Marshal spent the daytime out with Greg.
Most nights he came back after dinner to find that she was already asleep, sometimes in the common room or sometimes in the lab.
Pierre came around a week after the group split up and while he didn’t say much to Marshal, he was visibly unimpressed with what was going on. Marie wasn’t with him, which took away Elizabeth’s chance to clear Ethan’s name.
There was a noticeable tension between Pierre and most of the group.
Kyle didn’t particularly like him over a lecture he gave Elizabeth over her work and Whitlock. “I swear you people are doing everything wrong on purpose. Bringing a child into this life is one of the worst things you could have done because not only are you taking his life before he can start it, but you’re making yourself a complete liability to the group and setting them up for failure.”
What surprised is Kyle is that Elizabeth took the lecture without saying a word. It upset her, there was no doubt about that, but she never voiced her opinion on it.
That’s what made Kyle realize how passive Elizabeth actually was. Milo used to talk about how Elizabeth had changed since he had disappeared and after hearing how the others talked about her, Kyle started to understand more about her, though he couldn’t tell if she was actually happy in her current life or if she was just trying to convince everyone else that she was fine.
The thought was something that bothered him until Marshal and Gregory came back to the bunker during dinner one night. Kyle overheard him talking about how an incident with Greg ended up almost getting him stabbed.
She looked concerned about it and Kyle noticed that Marshal had to calm her down a little before she would change her entire attitude. She seemed genuinely happy in comparison to how she was before he returned.
It almost reminded him of Dawn.
Dawn cared about their family more than she did anything else and while she was generally pretty reserved, she didn’t let anyone tell her how to handle her marriage or her son.
Kyle saw that Elizabeth was putting her family life first, but he couldn’t say the same for Marshal. He had some doubts about what really spurred Marshal to attack Luke.
Everyone who was there said it Luke taunting him about Elizabeth, but he always felt something was off about it. He felt it was more personal than that based on how the group mentioned how badly Luke and Marshal got along in the city.
Later that night, Kyle stopped Marshal when he was on his own. “You need to do yourself a favor and pay more attention to your wife. She’s trying her best with all she has, but she needs you to be around every now and again.” He looked annoyed by what Kyle had to say, though he didn’t say much about it and he probably wouldn’t since he knew better than to start something with Kyle.
Marshal Kennedy
With all that had been going on with Pierre, Gregory, and the group splitting up, Elizabeth and Whitlock had become a second priority.
It wasn’t because he didn’t care, it was just because he knew that they could handle themselves better than any others in the group. The two meant the world to Marshal, but he knew Joseph had high expectations for him and that he could very well lose favor among the group if he put his personal life above the work that had to be done.
It was always a little embarrassing whenever Leah would ask how they were and Marshal couldn’t give a certain answer because he hadn’t seen them since the morning before.
Whenever he came back to the bunker, he’d grab something small to eat before getting Whitlock from his dad and putting him to bed. He’d only wake Elizabeth up to have her move from wherever she fell asleep once the baby was asleep so she wouldn’t have to worry about it.
That was what happened every single night. Nothing changed and nothing was expected to change.
The morning after he was able to go home early, he got a call from the motel about a minor issue with a tool.
It was about the time he would be getting up to get the day started anyway, so he decided to start getting ready like he normally did until Elizabeth woke up.
“You’re already leaving?” She kept her face buried under the blanket to avoid seeing light from the lamp that Marshal had turned on.
“It’s only like twenty minutes earlier than when I usually leave.”
“And yet you’ll find a way to stay twenty minutes later tonight.” She sounded upset by the topic.
He sighed, knowing she was more than likely right about that. He took his spot in bed next to her when she uncovered her face. “I don’t like it anymore than you do, believe me.”
“Then stay a little longer.” She turned over to face him. “What do they even need at the motel that can’t wait twenty minutes?”
“They said it was a minor problem with-“
“A minor problem, Marshal. You don’t need to leave so early just because of a minor problem when there’s at least forty people there that can look at whatever’s causing the problem.”
Marshal already knew that she was dead set on having him stay a little longer. He didn’t know if Pierre knew about the motel calling, but he did know it would be an issue with Pierre if he didn’t immediately go to handle whatever was happening at the motel.
[Stay with Elizabeth a little longer]
[Insist on going to the motel]
