Cascade

18 - Opposition

18 - Opposition

The dome was practically empty. Claire was surprised. The massive enclosure the size of most football stadiums was dimly lit, and nearly vacant. Claire could see light coming from within a medical tent about one hundred meters away. It cast long but faint shadows across the gloomy expanse.

The Center had been the most bustling place upon the entire world of Reynos. Now, its streets lay empty. Its huts and shops, closed. An eerie stillness permeated the recycled air.

The interior of the dome was layered. The outer rim being the lowest level, gradually rising like a series of round steps towards the middle, six levels higher. Dr. Luray’s personal residence lay in the center, surrounded by lush hydroponic gardens. The level below them lay the heavy lifting machines of Reynos. Waste disposal, water treatment, air recycling, power generation, and even extensive medical facilities surrounded the gardens like a ring of dirty industry biting at the heels of natural beauty. Beyond these lay a haphazard assembly of slums. Huts and shacks plied together with sheet metal and wire. All of them lay empty. It seemed that the population of Reynos had already been sent to claim the spoils of war.

Claire and Melissa walked past the stripped pieces of machinery, through the desolate streets, towards the only light within the entire hemisphere. The medical building, which was really an assembly of multi level tents, continued to emit the sterile glow, strobing erratically. Whatever was happening in that tent was drawing significant amounts of power. Claire had a pretty good idea what it was.

She was no stranger to medical procedures. No Paladin was. Claire remembered vividly the barrage of needles that awaited her many treatments. She could recall the pain she felt when strapped to the medical bed for days as new genetic sequences were written in to her DNA. It was where she had been broken and remade. By the look on Melissa’s face, she was thinking the same thing.

“Adam’s in there.” Melissa said.

“They’re all in there.” Claire replied. After all, if she had done her mission correctly, she would be in there too.

“They’re going to attack on sight.” Melissa said.

“I know.” Claire replied. They both stopped before the flap that would lead them in. “Remember, follow me exactly, wherever I go.”

Melissa nodded. Claire took a breath and burst through the flap.

Her eyes adjusted quickly to the much brighter interior. There was a figure laying on a table surrounded by five others. The one laying on the table had to be Adam, but it was difficult to tell. His face and body had been disfigured by burns. Terrible blisters covered his arms, and his hands were so damaged, they looked as if they belonged to a creature from a nightmare. Four of the other figures stood around the table. The fifth sat at the head.

Dr. Luray wheezed in his powered wheel-chair. The machines integrated into the back continued to filter his blood, aid his respiration, and feed vital fluids into him. The wrinkled and heavily grafted skin of the man looked pale in the fluorescent light, and the scarred hands of the doctor typed away at the terminal attached to the chair. His grey eyes bulged from his bald head as he turned his attention from the display, to the new company in the room.

The four other paladins turned their attention as well. Marcus, massive in stature, immediately tensed upon recognizing the two guests. Kayden gripped the table beside him with one hand, balling the other into a fist. His knuckles turned white. Amelia spun about on high alert, her dark red hair swishing behind her shoulders. The thin form of Harper instinctively took a step in front of the doctor, partially obscuring him from view.

“What are you doing here?” Harper demanded.

“The dead walk amongst us.” Dr. Luray said. His voice, though labored as always, was surprisingly calm and reserved. “Perhaps they have come to seek mercy.”