Children's Games: A Story of Modern Consequence

Chapter 33

~Dominik~

The warehouse looked like it could fit three whole soccer fields across, bleachers and all. The floor was cold concrete with markings almost everywhere that prepared for more vehicles, more equipment, more firearms. There were large passageways that branched out of the main warehouse, and the walls rose high to accommodate for the hundreds of floors of weapons rooms, laboratories, and bunkers that ran all the way to the top.

The roof was so far above them that it almost couldn't be seen. It must've reached to the surface, where Dominik could vaguely make out an extendable roof that looked like the one that sheltered Fimiston. He looked to the rows and rows of large aircraft with tanks loaded into their open bellies. Trucks with wheels taller than he was, and helicopters painted vibrantly with the unmistakable green camouflage pattern were everywhere he looked.

Groups of about forty soldiers ran laps of the perimeter, not breaking a sweat, even when their commander had them drop into push ups randomly. The soldiers up on the surface were sweet, old, and unthreatening... these soldiers were warriors. Young and alert.

Some of the passageways had large yellow signs warning of bombs and explosives. Some hallways directed towards labs and conference rooms. Some hallways lead to things he could never have imagined to be hiding underneath the dusty town of Fimiston.

"Sir, that one warns about nuclear bombs..." came Anna's shocked voice next to him. "Australia didn't officially have nuclear weapons. They signed a treaty at the start of the war... six years ago. They were banned after what happened to France... "

Shit. This is so much more dangerous than we thought. Shit, shit, shit.

"We need to leave. Now," said Anna urgently.

Dominik had another look around at their surroundings. Of course, it's a military base. Everything around Australia, at least what is left of it, leads back to this place somehow. Everything comes back to this stupid city, and now we know why. Fimiston had been picked for their mission because it was supposed to have the strongest military presence in Australia, and Dominik was a fool to think that their show of force upstairs in the public was all they had. This was one hundred times worse.

"Dominik, just seeing this place is proof of what is here. No one will question us. Fuck the rest of the mission. None of that is worth shit if we're found down here. We need to leave," continued Anna. She was spitting her words, her nostrils were flared, and she was holding her weapon that tightly that her knuckles were stark white.

Dominik was well aware of the obvious. He had already spent too much time arguing with Konstantin over the last few days about actually having to do this part of the mission. He had seen the logic in finding another way to find what was underneath the ginormous facade that was Fimiston. The clues were there that something big was being kept here, and there would've been less of a risk if they had spent the time to hack into the surveillance system, like they had with the council building. It would have taken them longer, but they would have better security to be able to protect themselves. But the Lieutenant General had dismissed him every time, enforcing the importance of concrete evidence and effective punishment.

"Shhh. I'm trying to think."

"With all due respect, sir, we don't have time for that. Those guards are going to come back with tech experts to figure out why the door opened all on its own. Then they're gonna realise that the security panel is broken. I don't know how they haven't already picked up on the fact that the guards who were supposed to be guarding the door are gone. Maybe they're just green, but sooner or later they're gonna see our bloody feet!"