End of Women: Part Two

New Management

The ground beneath Degan moved like dry wine. The air was thick with yellow smoke and pulsing, as flashes of light marked points in the distance. He was standing in a warzone.

He could hear voices yelling nearby but could see only shadows moving like dark ghosts behind the smoky screen. Above him was a fixed beam of light that might have been the sun, but whichever way he moved it seemed to always be just above his head. He was parched, tongue scratching on the clammy roof of his mouth, and his head thumped in time with the far off bombs.

He heard his name. It was a man's voice. Just then there was a loud crack like a heavy calibre gunshot, screams, and now all was quiet. Degan was filled with terrible dread and did not know why.

All at once the smoke cleared. The ground turned to green and there before him was a lush and fertile valley, and at the base was a city he had never seen. The buildings, sleek and perfect in the new light, blended with the land. Beyond them was a compound in the cradle of two mountains. He wept.

'Drink.'

The voice had no body but he could see a face. He knew the face.

'Where am I?' He heard himself say.

'You need to drink. You'll die.'

He saw no water, only green fields and the same bright light above his head. The fields, he saw, were turning blue, a luminous shade. Then he felt something take his head and he was falling in total panic.

'Drink!' said Millie.

Cold water trickled into his mouth. He became aware that his eyes were closed and he was on his back. As he lunged upwards a pair of soft hands caught him and gently laid him back down. The liquid filled his mouth and he swallowed. It was like being reborn.

'There you go. Drink up. '

He opened his eyes. A neon spotlight glared back into his pupils and he squinted, turning away. The black bars of his cell forced the reality of where he was back into his mind. He sighed and slowly pulled himself up.

'Careful,' Millie watched him stand, 'you were in shock. You haven't had any liquids for twenty-two hours.'

'There are better ways to kill me.' his voice cracked out of his mouth: he barely recognised it.

'Nobody was trying to kill you.' Millie tossed her hair aside and checked her eyes at the two Nova women standing guard outside the cell. They had their guns trained on Degan with looks of utter loathing etched into their slight features. 'We've been a bit busy.'

'Can we kill this Bluenorth prick now?'

Millie held up a palm to the woman who spoke, and she lowered her weapon reluctantly. Degan rolled his head side to side feeling his dehydrated brain slush around inside like a dry sponge.

'So you pulled it off.'

'They see things my way now, if that's what you mean.' Millie waved a dismissive hand in the direction of the two armed guards and they slid out of the room, casting hateful looks back at Degan as they did so. 'It cost a few more broken bones than I would have liked but, well, turns out I wasn't the only one who felt it was time for new management.'

Degan let out a laugh which turned into a painful cough.

'So why haven't you killed me?'

'I wasn't just talking shit when I said you're not a Bluenorth man any more. I wasn't busting your balls either. When I haven't been staging a coup over the last few days I've been looking into your backstory.'

'Yeah, plenty to read.' Degan rested his back against the bars and pressed a hand into his chest, forcing himself to breathe between gulps of merciful water.

'For a man who owned the largest energy supplier on the planet, you stayed out of the news. None of the rich Bluenorth pricks had anything to do with you until this all started. You weren't in on their cabal.'

Degan met her eyes. She was fiercely beautiful but coarse in the way she held herself, like a young boxer.

'Wilkes wouldn't have done this if it weren't for me.' he laid his head back and closed his eyes again.

'See, that's where I think you're wrong. You hate this, but Wilkes played you. This revolution was his plan all along. You didn't notice how much this place looks like your compounds?'

Degan said nothing. Millie sniffed.

'Theres a lot he isn't telling you. He knew all he needed to just to get you onside. You're a smart man, Degan. You must have doubts, questions about how he knew what your childhood fantasies were.'

'Im not too smart to get caught by femmos in the jungle.'

'Careful,' Millie snarled at the slur, 'I won't be patient with you forever.'

'Why the fuck are you trying? Just deal with me. '

'Lose the martyr act, it's getting old. You wanted to be part of something. I'm planning big things, Degan. Things these airheads can barely comprehend. I need someone with your experience. But you get one chance, and if you don't take it right now I'll call those two back in and let them have you. Otherwise, come with me, and I'll give you the answers Wilkes won't.'

Degan lifted his eyelids and stared into the light. For a few brief seconds the vision returned to him, a fertile valley beyond the war and a compound between two snowy mountains. He had no idea what it meant, nor for that matter why Millie cared if he lived or died. The only thing the cell had taught him was that he did not want to die in the Amazon at the hands of feminist terrorists. For now, that was enough.

'Where are we heading?' he asked.