Relative Strangers (Book 2) No Man Is An Island

32. SOS

Gun rounds fired throughout the room, forcing Matt and E to flatten themselves as much as possible to get out the way.
E didn't want to look at who had entered the room, but she just prayed that they were a friend and not a foe.
When the shooting finally stopped, E felt brave enough to raise her head and open her eyes.
"Did you miss me?".
E's eyes lit up as she saw Becker standing in front of her.
The General and his men were unconscious on the ground around her, allowing E to breath a sigh of relief.
Becker smiled and removed the handcuffs restraining E and Matt, allowing them to regain control of their arms.

"I don't understand how you knew that we were down here" admitted E as she stood to her feet and looked around at the soldiers beside Becker, who she didn't recognise.
"I placed a tracker in your bag when you weren't looking, on Lester's orders, before we left on this mission. We knew that you were going to get yourself into trouble at some point, so we wanted to know where you were at all times" answered Becker.
"But my bag isn't on me any more" frowned E, as she folded her arms.
"No, it's in the next room, one of the soldiers is taking care of it for you. But we followed the sound of voices until we found you" replied Becker.

"O.K, but that still doesn't explain where all these men came from. Because we definitely didn't arrive with them all, since I don't recognise them" admitted E.
"Lester and Jess received your SOS message and gathered up as many armed men as they could, before using your device to open an anomaly that led here. The soldiers then met up with me and the other men, and told me you were in danger. That was when I activated the tracker and came to look for you and Matt" explained Becker.
"So they aren't all ARC soldiers?" Asked E.
"Not all of them, no" replied Becker.
E lowered her voice, "But what about the creatures and the anomalies that are all over this island?".
"Don't worry, we've got a cover story for that. A mixture of nuclear waste and animals made in a lab. Luckily no one has asked any difficult questions yet" reassured Becker.

E nodded and turned her attention back to Matt.
"Are you O.K?" She asked.
"I've been better" winced Matt, as he clutched his ribs, which were clearly causing him a lot of pain.
"I'm sorry. This is all my fault. I didn't know what to do. I didn't know how to stop him. And I'm sorry that you are in pain because of me" apologised E.
"This was not your fault. You did everything right. I'm proud of how you acted back there"
"You are?"
"Yes. And I would take twice as many beatings, if it would keep you safe".

Matt smiled and placed his arm around her, holding her in a delicate hug, so that they didn't hurt each other.
"What about you? Are you alright?" Questioned Matt as they released each other.
"I'm fine, other than a bad bump to the head, I'm completely healthy, which is the opposite of last time" promised E.
"Good" replied Matt.

"What do we do with all the soldiers?" Quizzed E, looking down at the bodies on the floor around her.
"We used EMD's to knock them out. But once they wake up, they are being arrested and sent back to the mainland" answered Becker.
"Hmm. I know Lester doesn't want me to kill anyone, but surely he won't begrudge me one man who just tried to kill me and Matt" replied E, as she pushed General MacNamera's head to one side with her foot
Matt took hold of E's arm and shook his head, "Don't stoop down to his level".
"But he tried to kill you" reminded E.
"I know, but I don't want you taking revenge on my behalf" insisted Matt.

E sighed and nodded her head, "You're too forgiving Matt. But I won't kill him, for your sake".
Becker ordered his men to tie up the soldiers, but before they reached the General, E stomped on his fingers and kicked him in the face.
Becker and Matt frowned at her, but she raised her hands innocently.
"What? That was payback for hurting me. And if you'll notice, he is still alive" pointed out E.
"I guess that's something. Come on, let's get out of here" instructed Becker.
Not wanting to spend a minute longer in her prison cell, E followed Becker out of the bunker and back out into the sunlight.

"I forgot to ask, is everyone else alright?" Questioned E, as they stepped outside.
"Yep, everyones fine. Connor and Abby are placing the creatures back through the anomalies and into the correct time period" revealed Becker.
"But not all of the creatures anomaly's are still open" replied E.
"I know, that's why we need you to open some anomaly's for us, so that we can return them to their homes"
"Can't they stay here on the island, now that the men are leaving?"
"No, this is not there home. And we have to do what we always do when we find a creature lost in time. This is no different to finding a creature back home. Putting them back should always be the goal".

"But what if they just come back? This is an anomaly junction, so there will always be open anomalies here. And I thought that we were freeing this island for them, so that they could roam around in peace. I didn't know we were just going to put them back through the anomalies" grumbled E
"This place is covered in broken cages and fences, it isn't safe for the creatures to be here right now. Once we've cleared away this mess, the creatures can come and go as they please. We won't have someone here all the time to put them back. Once we are gone, that's it, we are not coming back any time soon" admitted Becker.

"This is the best thing for them E. You know deep down that they don't belong here" Matt said softly.
E nodded her head, but said nothing.
Although she wanted the creatures to remain on the island, as they had done for hundreds of years, she decided to follow Becker's instructions and return them all, since he had just saved her life.
Once her and the team had finished putting the creatures back, they all began making their way to the anomaly in the centre of the island. Which was the one E believed was responsible for causing the anomaly junction.
To reach it that had to destroy a large fence that MacNamera had placed around it.

"Are you ready to see it with your own eyes?" E asked Connor, once Becker and his men had removed the fence.
"I'm more excited to get some incredible data readings from it" admitted Connor.
"Well, here it is. The anomaly that has been open longer than any other anomaly I have ever recorded" announced E when they reached it.
"This is amazing" mumbled Connor as he stared at the device in his hands.
"When was the last time you were this close to it?" Matt asked E.
"I haven't been here for quite a while actually. I didn't come anywhere near it during those 6 months, because I didn't need to. My goal was freeing the creatures, and since nothing has ever come through here, due to the climate on the other side, I never need to get close to it. And before that I was with you, so I haven't been close to this anomaly in a while" answered E.

"Alright, you've seen it now. Can we go home?" Questioned Becker.
"Just a few more minutes" begged Connor, as he tried to get as much data written down as possible.
"We have got other things to do today" reminded Becker.
"I know, I know. I just need a bit longer. The readings from this anomaly are unlike anything I have ever seen before".
"I wish I knew why its readings were so different. But I've been studying it for years, and never been able to reach a conclusion" sighed E.
"I didn't think you were someone who gave up that easily" teased Matt.
"I haven't given up. I've just been a little busy recently to put any time into it. Maybe one day I will figure it out" admitted E.

E stepped closer to the anomaly to take some more readings with her own devices, so that she could study them later.
But the closer she got to the anomaly, the more her body began to tingle and tremble.
E had never experienced anything like it before, and she was intrigued. So instead of retreating to safety, she pushed forward, her body continuing to react to the anomaly in ways she had never felt before.
As she took another step, leaving her only one metre from the anomaly, her body could no longer take the effects from it, and she collapsed onto the floor.