THE HOLDOUTS
1238 Words
The explosion in Switzerland made international news.
Elliot watched the coverage from the command center, his hands folded on the table. The facility was gone. Morgan was gone. But the copies she had created—the ones in the tanks—were they gone too? Adam had managed to download a portion of the data before the self-destruct, but the files were corrupted, fragmented.
"We recovered neural maps for about fifty copies," Adam said. "The rest were lost."
Frank stood by the window. "Fifty copies out of two hundred."
"It's something."
"It's not enough."
Elliot turned from the screen. "Where are those fifty now?"
Adam pulled up a map. "Scattered. Some in Europe. Some in Asia. A few here in the States. Morgan had already shipped them out before we arrived."
"She was building an army."
"She was building a contingency."
---
The first copy on the list was in Chicago.
Elliot flew there with a small team—Frank, Marcus, and a copy named Lena who had agreed to help with negotiations.
The address was an abandoned warehouse on the south side.
"The copy's name is Kael," Lena said. "He was one of Viktor's lieutenants. After Viktor was captured, Kael went underground."
"Why would he help us?"
"He won't. But he might listen."
---
The warehouse was dark and cold.
Elliot walked through the entrance, his footsteps echoing on the concrete floor. Frank followed, his hand on his rifle.
"Kael," Elliot called out. "I'm here to talk."
Silence.
Then a figure stepped out of the shadows. Tall, broad-shouldered, with a shaved head and cold eyes.
"You're Elliot Reed," Kael said.
"I am."
"You killed Viktor."
"I stopped him. There's a difference."
"Not to me."
Kael raised a weapon—a homemade pistol, crude but deadly.
Frank raised his rifle. "Put it down."
"Or what? You'll shoot me? Go ahead. I'm not afraid to die."
Elliot stepped forward. "I'm not here to kill you. I'm here to offer you a choice."
"What choice?"
"Come with us. Help us build something better. Or stay here and rot."
Kael laughed. "You think you can save me?"
"I think everyone deserves a second chance."
---
The standoff lasted for an hour.
Kael's finger hovered over the trigger. Elliot's heart pounded.
Then Kael lowered the weapon.
"You're either very brave or very stupid."
"Probably both."
Kael stepped forward. "What do you want from me?"
"Information. About the other copies. About Morgan's network."
"I don't know anything."
"You know more than you're saying."
Kael was silent for a moment. Then he said, "There's a facility in the desert. Not like the others. This one is mobile. Trains. Trucks. They move the copies around, keep them hidden."
"Who runs it?"
"I don't know his name. But he's not a copy. He's human. And he's planning something."
---
The drive back to the base was long.
Elliot sat in the back of the van, staring out the window. Frank drove. Kael was in the second vehicle, under guard.
"You trust him?" Frank asked.
"I trust that he's scared. That's enough for now."
"He could be leading us into a trap."
"Everything could be a trap."
---
The base was quiet when they returned.
Elliot handed Kael over to Marcus for processing. Then he walked to the command center.
Adam was at his computer, his face pale.
"I've been tracking the mobile facility," Adam said. "It's in the desert. Moving south. It will cross the border into Mexico in three days."
"Can we intercept it?"
"Maybe. But we'll need help."
"What kind of help?"
"Military. Air support. Ground troops."
Elliot shook his head. "The government won't help us."
"Then we find someone who will."
---
Morgan's contacts were still in place.
Elliot reached out to the people who had funded her research, who had bought her copies, who had profited from her work.
Some refused to talk. Others agreed to meet.
One of them was a woman named Elara. She was wealthy, connected, and terrified.
"Morgan was using me," Elara said. "She promised me a copy of my dead son. In exchange, I gave her money. Access. Protection."
"Do you know where the mobile facility is headed?"
Elara nodded. "There's a compound in Mexico. Hidden in the jungle. Morgan built it years ago. She kept it off the books."
"Can you get us in?"
"I can get you to the gate. After that, you're on your own."
---
The mission took three days to plan.
Elliot led the team. Frank handled security. Marcus coordinated the assault.
Kael volunteered to come. "I know the layout. I can help."
Elliot looked at him. "Why?"
"Because I'm tired of running. And because you gave me a chance."
---
The compound was hidden in the jungle, accessible only by a narrow road.
Elliot's team moved through the trees, silent, deadly. The guards were mercenaries—trained, armed, dangerous.
Frank took down the first two. Marcus took the next.
They reached the gate.
Elliot pressed a device against the scanner. The lock clicked.
---
The compound was larger than they expected.
Buildings sprawled across the clearing—barracks, laboratories, a medical wing. And in the center, a train.
The mobile facility.
"Copies are inside," Adam said through the earpiece. "Dozens of them."
"How do we get them out?"
"There's a control panel on the side of the train. You'll need to override the locks."
Elliot ran.
---
The control panel was guarded.
Two mercenaries stood in front of it. Frank dropped them both.
Elliot pressed the override. The train doors opened.
Copies stumbled out—weak, confused, frightened.
"Follow me," Elliot shouted. "Stay low. Stay quiet."
They moved toward the gate.
---
The alarm blared.
Lights flashed. Sirens wailed.
Guards poured from the buildings.
"Adam, we need extraction," Elliot shouted.
"Helicopters are on their way. ETA ten minutes."
"We don't have ten minutes."
---
The battle was chaos.
Elliot fired until his rifle clicked empty. Frank covered him while he reloaded. Marcus held the left flank.
Kael fought beside them, his homemade pistol barking.
"How many?" Frank shouted.
"Too many," Kael replied.
"We need to retreat."
"Where?"
"The tree line. We can hold them there."
They ran.
---
The helicopters arrived at the tree line.
Elliot loaded the copies onto the aircraft, one by one.
"Go," he shouted.
The helicopters lifted.
---
The compound burned behind them.
Elliot sat in the helicopter, watching the flames.
Frank sat beside him. "How many?"
"Forty-three. Out of maybe a hundred."
"We tried."
"Not hard enough."
---
The base was quiet when they returned.
Daphne met him at the entrance. "You're alive."
"Barely."
"The copies?"
"Settling in. Charlotte is taking care of them."
Elliot nodded. "Good."
---
That night, Elliot stood on the roof, watching the stars.
Frank joined him. "You're thinking again."
"I'm always thinking."
"About what?"
"About the copies we left behind. The ones in the compound. They're probably dead."
"Or they're being moved. Hidden somewhere else."
Elliot shook his head. "We'll never find them all."
"No. But we'll find some."
"Is that enough?"
"It has to be."
---
The next morning, a message arrived.
A young woman, her face pale, her hands shaking.
"Are you Elliot Reed?"
"Yes."
"I have a message. From the man who runs the mobile facility."
Elliot took the tablet.
The screen glowed with a single sentence.
"You've taken something that belongs to me. I want it back."
- Writer
