Legion of 8

Chapter 8: Jax

I just ran. I couldn't stop. I wasn't even sure how far away I had to be to lose her, but by the time I had reached the tram station by the roadside, I felt like it had been enough time.

The night was still as only a few cars passed on the roadside. I checked my phone, out of breath and about to collapse from all the running. One thirty in the morning. The next tram would come at two.

I hadn't had much time to calculate it out, but because our trams were unmanned, they mostly ran twenty-four hours a day. I guess I just had to hope I was right.

My grandfather had taken the liberty of letting me sleep again instead of haunting my dreams, which again, I was grateful for, but I wasn't really sure if the cost was worth it. The rest of the team would be heartbroken that I'd left. But then again, I guess heartbroken was better than dead at the hands of Veritas.

Besides, it wasn't like I'd completely left them. I had put some money on the table in the inn room so they wouldn't be left without support, and Quillion and Harvey were good leaders, so I had no doubt they could get back safely. Wherever they would go.

At this point, I felt stupid. I was just trying to desperately prove to myself I'd made the right decision. But in cases like this, I didn't think there was a right decision. Was there? I either had to save my friends and risk the world and risk my friends and save the world.

At that point, the tram pulled up. I told the automated driver my location and it whisked me off to Crossroads Station at the old compound. Technically, Crossroads Station was the town at the bottom of the mountain. The compound at the top didn't really have a name, just Veritas.

When the tram dropped me off, I exited, thanked it, and made my way over to the base of the mountain, where I knew a hidden elevator was waiting for me. It usually would have been locked and turned off for the night, but somehow I knew my grandfather was just waiting for my arrival and had planned for it accordingly.

Sure enough, hidden in the rocky edge of the mountain, was a particularly round clay-colored rock, which I pushed to reveal an opening in the mountainside, with a metal elevator alit with a single light. I entered and reluctantly pushed the upwards button, raising me towards the top of the mountain.

After a moment, everything stopped and the elevator emerged in another rock at the top of the mountain. Outside was the compound, grey and cold, with a fence surrounding it. They'd added extra security since I had last been there, with two armed guards in towers across the fence. When I walked towards it, they trained their sights on me.

"Jaxon Veritas, Malcolm's grandson," I said with my hands up, "I'm just here for a visit."

It physically pained me to use my old cohort name, but I didn't have another choice if I wanted to get inside.

"Let him in," said a voice from behind the gate, which opened to reveal my grandfather standing behind it. The guards eyed me with suspicion but still gave me passage into the compound without killing me.

"Good to see you!" My grandfather opened his arms for a hug, which I did not take.

"I'm not exactly in the mood for a reunion," I said coldly.

He didn't respond with some snarky comeback this time, he just said, "Follow me inside, we have a lot to talk about."

Hesitantly, I followed him inside the compound, which instantly brought back hoards of memories I forgot I'd even had. I tried my hardest to push them aside, but it was to no avail. In my brain, images swirled. Following my father around the compound. Training in the training rooms with the other kids. The day I'd been sent on my very first mission. I was twelve.