CHAPTER THIRTY TWO - GOODBYE
Brian stifled a yawn as they clambered up another hill to be met by a grassy plain that was covered in hillocks of patchy grass. A few misshapen trees leered against the skyline and Brian grimaced as he wondered how many muddy ditches the hills concealed. He was now almost unrecognisable in his filthy clothes. There wasn’t a single part of him that wasn’t thickly coated in mud and grime. The bottoms of his jeans were ripped and saturated with filthy water and mud. He groaned inwardly and closed his eyes. They had been walking for hours, even though Bri had assured him when they started off that it wasn’t far. After every hill or turn Brian had been hoping that they would come upon the base, but each time he had been met by more countryside that he was going to have to face.
So far there had been mountainous paths fall of slippery stones and jagged rocks that had torn at his clothes as they had left the sheltered hideout they had slept in and then there had been a terribly boggy field that Brian had thought he might sink into with every step he took.
He scratched his face slightly, itching under the ingrained muck and the stubble that was staring to cover his chin. His fete felt so heavy now with anticipation and it was all he could do to carry on walking and not to fall over. How much longer was he going to have to wait for B and Sammy? He thought back to the moment he had found B on his doorstep. It felt like so long ago… so long since he had seen him safe.
“There it is,” Bri whispered, pointing to a patch of the field full of various humps and hillocks as well as trees that sprouted out of the ground like sickly giants.
Brian’s brow furrowed in confusion as he gazed about the landscape, seeing nothing that resembled a Gerai base. “Are you sure?” he asked. Bri had never been to this base and had been navigating using a map that Darren had given to him, but how could they be exactly sure where the base was?
Bri nodded. “It’s underground,” he said. “You can’t see it from above, which is why we’ve had a hard time finding the damn place. There’s some concealed entrances around here. Hopefully Howie would have staked them all out now.”
Brian gulped slightly. They were so close now. B and Sammy were nearby and soon they would find out exactly what had been happening to them.
He glanced about the field and felt the cold wind rubbing roughly against his skin. He could feel his heart bouncing madly and erratically inside of his chest and he suddenly realised how sick he felt. Himself and Bri had hardly eaten anything over the past few days, though neither of them had mentioned it. Brian had been so intent upon their mission that he hadn’t seemed to have the time to eat. All the energy so far had come from sheer willpower and determination.
“Where abouts will Howie be?” Brian asked.
“He’s been scouting this place for days and checking out the pattern of Gerai movements. Last time Darren spoke to him, he was down in a valley just over this hill and they were gathering more people. There should be a mini army by the time you reach them,” Bri said as he began to lead Brian round the edge of the field.
Brian stopped suddenly. “When I reach them?” he asked, noting that there was no ‘we’ in that sentence. “What about you?”
Bri took a deep breath as he stared at Brian steadily. “I’m going on ahead,” he said softly. “I’m going to get inside of that base now. You can go down into the valley and look for Howie. If he’s not there then find a safe place to wait. He might have moved but he’ll be looking for us so he’ll find you eventually.”
Brian shook his head. “No.” He hadn’t come this far to wait around to be rescued. He was tired, hurt and muddy and he would go through so much more for B. “I’m coming with you to help.” He’d proved himself to Bri now surely?
Bri shook his head. “I would, but it’s not safe. I don’t know what’s in that base. If you die, then the entire game is over for me, you, Sammy and B. They need you to stay alive in this time. You’ve got too much to do back in your own time to go dying in this one,” Bri replied firmly.
Brian hesitated. He knew Bri’s words to be true, but he was still unwillingly to stay behind. “The Gerai won’t kill me. They’ve already told me so.”
“But do you trust them? And it won’t protect you against accidents. You’re barely recognisable anymore under all that mud. Please Brian, just do as I say. Go and find Howie. Tell him I’ve arrived. Hopefully everyone he was waiting for will have arrived too and he’ll be ready to make a move. He’s been planning for days how’s best to break into the base with a large group. You’ll be safer with them and I’ll be better alone.”
“Why don’t you wait for Howie?” Brian folded his arms stubbornly.
“I can’t!” Bri wailed, his voice becoming louder with desperation. “Can’t you see? Can’t you feel it? I’m worried sick about B and Sammy! I don’t know what’s happening and one of us has to go in there now to try and save them now! If I can get in there then I might be able to create a diversion or something, anything that might help Howie and his team to get into the base more easily. I can’t wait any longer! I have to get in there!” He finished and breathed deeply. “I have to help them,” he murmured.
Brian felt it in his chest. The nervous worry that kept eating at his stomach whenever he thought of B or Sammy. ‘It’s taken too long to get here,’ he realised. There was no telling what state they would be in, especially B who had been having experiments performed upon him. And he did feel Bri’s emotions, more strongly now. They were constantly humming in the background of his mind, a permanent ripple of guilt and agony.
He slowly turned to stare at the hill Bri had pointed to when he’d spoken of the valley. Howie’s hiding place and the valley must be on the other side. He bit his lip and turned back to Bri. “How do you know he’s not already gone inside the base? He might be in there right now. They might need help form both of us.”
“I don’t know where they are,” Bri admitted. “But I think they will have waited. The information they had when I left the base was very sketchy and it’s probably not improved much. Hell, Howie might want to wait a few more days before he attacks but you have to make him come now!”
Brian stared into his twin’s eyes and then he nodded heavily. He wanted to go in there himself and help B and Sammy, but they could never do it between two of them. Someone had to go and tell Howie that they were acting now. “All right,” he said eventually. “Okay, I’ll do it.”
Bri’s eyes flashed with relief and he weakly smiled. “Thank you, it means a lot to me.”
“I’m not staying behind when Howie goes in there though,” Brian warned him. He didn’t care how dangerous it was for him. He would not stand idly by and let anything happen to his family, or his future self. It was strange how the two of them had finally begun to connect now. When they had first met they had been utter enemies intent upon hurting one another, but now Bri was like a friend.
“It’s dangerous,” Bri protested. “Not just for you, but for this timeline. I know you’re worried, but trust me. I’ll get them both out of there alive, I promise. I don’t want you putting yourself at risk. Howie and I and everyone else have combat experience and you don’t.”
Brian felt a twinge of resentment burning his side. He had experience. He had been inside a Gerai base before and he had survived and managed to save Sammy and B from a monster who had been determined to murder them to get revenge on Brian. He knew how to fight and he knew how to rely on his own abilities. He admitted that his own survival then had been down mostly to luck, but he still had experience. “I can do this,” he whispered.
Bri shook his head slowly. “I can’t let you. You know that. I let you come with me this far, but we have to part now. Anything could happen in that base. Asking you to go in there would be asking B and Sammy to risk their lives. If anything happens to you, then they’ll be gone. I can’t let that happen. They’re in enough trouble as it is.”
Bri’s voice was not triumphant or condescending, he was being truly honest. If there had not been a risk to B or Sammy, then he would have let Brian accompany him. Brian sighed and met his twin’s blue eyed stare. “Okay,” he said in defeat. “I guess I should be grateful that you let me come this far with you.”
Bri shrugged and Brian could have sworn that his cheeks were reddening slightly. “It was nice to have some company, especially as Nick had to stay behind.” He sighed for a moment and closed his eyes. “I hope he’s okay. Darren should probably have been and fetched him by now.”
Brian nodded. Nick had been kind to him form the very beginning and he had hated seeing him in so much pain. He would be all right though. All he had needed was rest and he would be able to do that in Josphin’s village. “I’m sure he’s fine.”
There was a silence for a moment before Bri finally spoke. “Howie should be down there. Be careful and look out for Gerai.” He walked a few steps up the hill and then pointed to the dip below that was covered in trees and bushes. A good hiding place, Brian realised, but it could hide both allies and enemies. “Be careful,” Bri continued. “And take this.” He fumbled in his bag and then pulled out a small scanner. He held the small screen out for Brian to see. “It’s scans about a hundred metres in all directions. That’s not far so you’ll still need to be wary of laser fire, but it should give you some warning if someone’s near you. Obviously though, this can’t tell if a person is a Gerai or a friend. Be careful.”
“Thanks,” Brian replied as he took the scanner gratefully. “What about you? Won’t you need one for inside of the base?” The Gerai were bound to have scanners in there and would easily be able to tell that a stranger had entered the place. Bri would need something to help him dodge the Gerai.
“I’ll be fine. I’ve got a spare one here.” Bri pulled another scanner out of his bag. “I’ll be careful.”
Brian smiled weakly. “Don’t get me killed,” he whispered.
Bri mirrored the expression. “And don’t you do the same to me now I’ve let you go wandering off.”
“I’ll be careful,” Brian promised. If he died then Bri would never be able to save B and Sammy and there would be no telling what would happen to the timeline. B, for one, would not exist anymore. He glanced down at the dip and bit his lip. He had to get help. ‘I can do this,’ he told himself firmly. He turned back to Bri and an odd feeling of foreboding set upon him as he realised that this could be the last time he saw him. He could be staring his own death right in the face. He gulped. It didn’t feel like he was staring at himself. It felt as if he were looking at… a friend. After this was all over, he knew that he would never see him again and yet he still could not understand how he could become like Bri.
“Thanks for keeping me company,” Bri said awkwardly as the wind blew through their silence.
“You’re welcome. Thank you for not ditching me in that village.” Brian took a deep breath. “Nobody else would have let me help out.” Bri had been the last person he had expected to let him come on this mission and yet he had seemed to be more understanding than anyone else.
“I’ll bring them back. You’ll see B again, and Sammy.”
“And you’ll be able to make up with B,” Brian said softly. “He loves you to bits, don’t forget that ever.”
Bri smiled again. “I better get going. I have to find a way into that base.” He turned away slowly and began to head back down the slope, but then he paused and turned around. “Thank you.”
Brian smiled at him welcomingly and watched him as he set off along the hill. Looking about the land he had no idea how Bri would find an entrance, but presumably there was something somewhere and Bri was smart anyway.
Brian took a deep breath, but his stomach felt oddly empty, and it wasn’t from lack of food. He whispered a prayer in his mind for God to protect his new friend and another to beg for Sammy and B’s safe return. He turned and set off on his own little quest down the hill. He stared into the dip and glanced once at the scanner before setting off down towards the trees.
He kept a close eye on the scanner, determined not to ruin everything now by getting himself killed, but he couldn’t help tearing his eyes away to glance up at the sky above. It was still quite early and the sun was low and covered with icy clouds. He wandered how he would be feeling when that sun set tonight. It could all be over by then and he would know finally what had become of B and Sammy. By tonight he would either be crying for joy or crying for sadness.