Turncoat: Turncoat Trilogy Book 1

Chapter 6.2

I began to sift through the gear, a standard armor set cut for a female figure, tablet, pistol, premade hacks, helmet, all of the gear I would need. It was clear the armor had been stolen from the military, but there were a few modifications to it. Namely, I only had a torso set.

"Only a torso piece?" I asked.

"Nobody has a full set," Vicki said. "We usually tailor the pieces we have to fit the person's advantages. So, Nick's got a torso and his flesh arm, but not his bionic. I have a full torso piece like you, but no legs. Most of us don't have leg armor."

I packed away the armor and pulled out the clothing stuffed into the bottom. A pair of baggy pants, black turtle neck, knee pads, and gloves without fingertip on the thumb, index and middle finger.

"Oh, you'll want to change, before we leave," Nick said. "Unless you want to change in front of Kai."

I took the clothes, minus gloves and knee pads, and retreated to my room, returning a few minutes later in the thin turtle neck and pants. Nick had packed my gear away and held both duffels. "We should get going, Kai is going to expect us at the hoverport."

"We have a hovercar?" I asked.

"We have the kredit to rent a hovercar," Nick said. "It'll take us to the rendezvous point at the base of the mountains, there we meet the group the camp is sending us, from there, we hit the train and we hit the train hard. Take out the onboard troops, anyone who surrenders is taken prisoner, anyone who doesn't is killed. Stop the train, signal the camp, they'll provide more forces to extract us and we'll send the train off again where it will arrive in Praia, empty. Or that's the basic idea anyway."

"What will happen to the prisoners?" I asked. I took the duffel of my gear from Nick and we left my house behind.

"Which ones?" Nick asked. "Ours or theirs?"

"Both," I said.

"Well, theirs will be given a choice to leave or stay, the ones who stay will be given positions inside the resistance, their family, if they have any will be allowed to stay with them. The ones who want to leave will be transported to the front lines via a secret route and then the alliance will take control of the transport. If everything goes according to plan, they'll be free people in a month," Vicki said.

"Ours, on the other hand, will be held in the camp, treated better than they deserve, but held. Any who decide they want to change their way will be allowed to, they'll have to earn their trust but they'll be taken into the resistance. Once a traitor, always a traitor, so they don't get far rank wise. Foot troops mostly. The ones who don't are offered up for hostage exchange, granted we usually don't get anything out of that. If the government doesn't want them, they get one last chance to betray the government, if not, we strip them down, take their weapons, and cut them loose," Nick said.

"Aren't you worried about them getting back?" I asked.

"Oh, by cut them loose, I mean we execute them," Nick shrugged. "Sorry, sounded nicer that way."

I nodded and we entered an elevator. "One thing, Nick," I said. "Don't sugar coat things, if I'm part of the team now, just say it straight."

Nick smiled and nodded. "I can do that," he said. "So, now that we aren't sugar coating things, after the op, we're going back to the camp and I would love to treat you to the best food we have to offer."

I raised my eyebrow questioningly. "Like a date?" I asked.

"Yes, exactly like a date," Nick said. "Yes, I am asking you out on a date."

The doors opened and we stepped out into the tunnels across from a set of steps leading up to the ground. "I'm going to have to decline," I told him.

"What, why? Come on, two people with the same issues against an oppressive regime and bionics, we'd be adorable together," Nick argued.

"You just aren't my type," I shrugged as we exited and began up the stairs.

"What is your type?" he asked.

"Not sugarcoated?" I asked.

Nick nodded. "Since you want nothing sugarcoated, yes. I would prefer to know right out why you're rejecting me."

I looked around really quickly for any cameras or people. With no one around and no surveillance equipment to speak of, I hooked my arm around Vicki and leaned my head on her shoulder. I batted my eyes and Vicki leaned her head on mine.

Nick pursed his lips for a moment as I released Vicki and we got moving again. "Couldn't just be one kind of a Feral, could you?" he asked.

"I didn't exactly choose to be Tzi and gay," I whispered. "It's all I can do to not be found out."

"If you're going to talk about Ferals, don't go whispering it," Kai said.

I whirled around to look at him. "Where'd you come from?" I asked.

"Same place you did," he said.

What? He wasn't with us when we left. We entered the hoverport to see a hundred or so hovercars sitting around waiting to go.

"You two, car's ready, bring it around. Once we're out of the city, start getting armored up, we have a small window of time and we're already pushing it," he ordered.

"Yes, sir," Vicki and Nick said simultaneously.

"What about me?" I asked.

"We are going to have a chat," he said.

"About?" I asked.

"This mission," he said. "We are going after a train filled with highly trained Dead Heads, not these investigative dead heads, security dead heads, tasked with protecting Ferals, people they would have no issue shooting into a crowd of, just to spite us. What I need to know is if you can handle it."

"I can handle it," I said.

"You're our Hacker and you're new, so stay behind us and don't do anything without being told to," he said.

"And if I see an opening?" I asked.

"My way or no way," he said. "Got it?"

I nodded. "Yes, sir," I said.

He motioned behind me. I turned to see a hovercar setting down on the pavement in front of us. Vicki opened the door and slid across the seat in the back. Nick got out of the driver seat and took the seat beside Vicki. I sat across from them as Kai took the driver seat and we set off. As soon as we broke free of the city, Vicki opened her duffle and began to pull her armor on, starting with the torso piece.