Sub Terra: Et Reditus

Nine

Daniel

I breathed a sigh of relief as I put my Screen back in my pocket. I almost thought I couldn't convince Mrs. Martino to take Gus with us to Morocco. I had to remind her of the promise I made to Gianni; to keep Gus safe no matter what. I heard her voice break as she told me her decision. It must've been hard, but knowing how close I was to Gianni, she knew I wouldn't back down on my word.

"Here, Señor?" I heard a voice say. It was my taxi driver. To my right was the office of the tour company I worked for.

"Yep." I said, unbuckling my seatbelt. I handed him a fare of 150 shillings and thanked him as I left the vehicle.

I myself could never drive. I could've, if it wasn't for the constant body pains that only hurt more and more each year since I was experimented on. Just another result of Kumar's exploits coming to light.

I didn't come for work purposes. I'd been laid off earlier that day, as a result of slow business. I'd guessed they finally realized it was hopeless doing that sort of endeavor during a war. It gave me a new sense of joy as I could finally stop doing the thing that kept me unhappy. Even if it took me months, I'd gladly accept some other sort of stable, comfortable employment. The reason I came here was to have a private meeting with El Observador. It was a short distance away, but I always had to keep cautious. I couldn't take any risks by being dropped off directly in front of the cathedral.

I tightened the scarf around my lower face and pulled my hoodie strings closer. I always had to wear a disguise when travelling to or from something Front related. As unwanted as it was, it'd help keep my identity concealed.

~~~

I pushed the rotting wood double doors of the aging building. There, at the altar, sat El Observador, dragging away at a cigarette. I sat on a broken chunk of concrete a few feet in front of him.

"Good afternoon, Sterling." He said quietly, exhaling smoke.

I returned the greeting.

"I've heard some things about you. From Martino, about your condition."

I stared at him, studying his face.  Was he talking about the experiments?

"Why'd he tell you about all that?"

"He's worried about you,"

Naturally, he would. He's my best friend.

"But it seems you're holding up well. It's a good thing you're in the Civilian section of the Front and not the Military one."

I nodded in agreement.

"I have something to tell you too." I told him.

"Yeah?"

"Well... I found my dad."

His eyes widened. He was surprised.

"Did you really? That's- I'm happy for you." He said with a hint of a smile.

"I would like permission to see him," I said. "He's in Morocco right now. I have a way to get there. It'll only be for a month."

He looked at my body, scanning me with his eyes as he thought of an answer.

"Permission granted," he said. "But you're gonna need a few things. Wait right here, I'll grab 'em for ya'."

He dropped the butt of his cigarette and stomped on it, before jogging over to a door leading to a storage room. Less than five minutes later, he returned with a steel box, about one foot by one foot by one foot in size. He opened it and showed me its contents.

"These things are for you to protect yourself with,"

He opened the box and pulled out a small white gun, just a bit larger than my Glock.

"The Estrella 19-7. A laser gun with a range of 0-500 feet. It won't kill anyone but will keep them bedridden for a while,"

He placed it back and took out a pair of green gloves.

"Morrison Combat Gloves. Greatly increases your strength and can break ribs in one punch, can also be used to deflect damage from oncoming forces,"

He then unveiled a pair of black boots.

"Finally, we have the Blenheim Battle Boots. The name sounds silly but it can save your life. It can temporarily increase your speed to 20 miles per hour and will protect your feet from heat and shrapnel based projectiles."

"This stuff is almost military grade." I said, admiring my new possessions.

"They are. You'll never know who or what might meet you out there."

"I appreciate it, El Observador." I said with a smile.

"You're gonna need this, too."

He gave me a white box small enough to fit in my hand. In it was a simple black ring made of titanium.

"This'll help us track your location if you get lost. If you tap on it three times consecutively you can talk to one of our agents and they'll help you out."

I slipped it onto my right ring finger.

"I assume this will be the last time we speak for a while." I remarked.

"Yes. I'll be leaving La Ciudad too."

"Why?" I asked. This came as a surprise to me as he'd been the campus chief ever since I joined the Front.

"I've been reassigned to the Military section. I'm going to be leading an infiltration unit."

"Infiltration? But you're a not even a soldier, let alone someone who could sneak into the Citadel unscathed."

"Believe me, I was," he said sternly. "13 years ago I was a cadet in the Special Forces. I had to stop because the second Supreme Leader came into power, and they- no, she dissolved the Special Forces and made all former members join the new HEF,"

I cringed as he said that acronym.

"They gave me a choice. Either join them or be discharged from the Military altogether. That's why I'm a civilian now." He said with a slight laugh.

"So that's how it is." I said.

"Yeah. Tonight I have a flight to our base on the old Mexican-American border, right by San Diego."

"Good luck." I told him. It was my time to leave. I bid him farewell and turned towards the doors with the steel box in my arms.

"See ya, Sterling. The next time we talk, call me Lieutenant Ahmed."