Unplugged: The Beautiful World (#3, Unplugged Trilogy)

Chapter Seven

Rain. When I look at it long enough, it starts to look like... stars. As if all of the stars from the sky had turned to liquid and pour down upon us. The Mothership flies a bit slower than usual, probably running out of fuel. None of us dare to acknowledge it, hoping that it won't come to fruition if we ignore it hard enough. The storm raises in intensity and the raindrops make loud thuds as they hit the windshield, like tiny rocks are being tossed at the glass.
    "Do you know where we are?" Matthew asks drowsily. It's been about three hours since we witnessed the interview with Fake Enna, as we all call her now.
    "Umm..." Victoria fishes around for a map. Unable to find one, she tosses her hands up. "We've been traveling much faster than before due to the deteriorating weather conditions... I say we are about an hour from the base, on the south side."
    I sit up, suddenly nervous. What if we're being tracked? What if people are watching the skies, waiting for us to pass this way? My eyes begin to scan the windows more urgently.
    "Calm down," Matthew mutters. "Everything's fine."
    "Oh, really? How do you know we're not being followed?" He holds up his hands in defense.
    "Hey, I'm just trying to--" An ear-splitting crash rips through the silence and the Mothership staggers in the air. I dig my fingers into the soft fabric of the couch, bracing my feet against the floor as we tilt to the side precariously. Tables and lamps slam to the ground and glass flies everywhere.
    "What's happening?" I scream, panic tightening my muscles. "What was that?"
    "I don't know!" Victoria replies, glancing nervously all around the cockpit. Matthew jumps to his feet and sprints over to the double doors, pulling them open. Out in the hallway, glass covers the floors underneath a broken window. It looks like something enormous had barreled through.
    "Do you see anything?" Gale exclaims, curled up in the floor with her hands over her head.
    "I don't really have a good--"
    Another crash destroys the silence and the airship lurches farther to the right. Matthew topples over and I slide onto the floor, arms and legs scrambling for a hold on something, anything...
    "We're being attacked!" Victoria screams from her spot on the floor. I glance at the small radar above the windshield. A red dot hovers just above our own ship, and I suddenly catch view of a small warship through the side window.
    "But we're invisible!" I cry, ducking under the table. Matthew belly crawls over to me, choking on rubble. Blood seeps from a cut on his forehead.
    "That can't keep them from tracking us!" Victoria replies, staring dumbstruck at the many controls in front of her.
    "Get down! What are you doing?" Matthew demands, glaring at his mother.
    "Fighting back." With a determined set of her jaw, she maneuvers a large joystick and presses several buttons. A rocket-like weapon plunges into the enemy ship, and I watch it start spiraling to the ground. Smoke and flame burst from one of the windows. We all sit in surprised silence. For a moment.
    "Are there any more following us?" I ask, struggling to keep my voice from wavering. Victoria checks more screens and flashing statistics.
    "Not at the moment, but I'm sure that ship was just the beginning of it. We need to land. Now."
    None of us complain. Coupled with the urgent threat of attack, our dwindling fuel supply poses too much of an issue; trying to move forward would be suicide. Yet the question still remains: where could we land where we won't be found in an instant?
    "Do it quickly," Gale mumbles, clutching a table leg. Her face looks green, as if she might throw up at any moment. Gritting her teeth, Victoria maneuvers the large craft downwards. Hard pellets of rain continue to pound down upon the windows and ceiling. The expansive clay ground grows closer as we soar towards it. Every part of me shakes in apprehension. The Mothership touches down in moments, coming to a rumbling, crunching stop.
    After a beat, Victoria pulls the lever that lowers the landing ramp. Slowly and unsurely, we get to our feet and rush towards the exit. Black smoke rises into the stormy sky from the spots on the Mothership where it was impacted. The bright flame sparkles in the air at the other end of the aircraft, causing dark splotches to conceal my vision. Matthew takes my hand, yanking me out of my stupor.
    "Let's go, alright?" He smiles mirthlessly. "Okay?"
    I nod slowly, reluctant to leave the place that had seemed like such a proper home for so many days. The thought of the RoboMeds and the RoboChefs going up in flame sends a surprising flare of sorrow blossoming in the back of my neck. Matthew leads me down the ramp, now slippery with water droplets, while Victoria and Gale follow a few steps behind. Warm, humid air sends my hair billowing behind me and as soon as we step out from under the cover of the Mothership, rain soaks through my t-shirt. Shivers rack my spine, and Matthew wraps his jacket around my arms. Puddles form over the rocky ground, creating a messy slush that squelches under our feet. Only small trees and plants break the monotony of the atmosphere. Lighting strikes in the near distance, illuminating the afternoon sky for a few seconds. The dark silhouettes of impending enemies grow larger each moment.
    "What do we do?" Gale screams over the storm.
    "We need to find some cover!" Matthew replies, bellowing so he can be heard. In unison, we start towards the largest patch of vegetation: a stunted tree surrounded by small stretches of undergrowth. Victoria slides on the saturated clay, almost falling to her knees. We pause to help steady her before promptly heading off again. It takes much longer than I'd like to reach the cover of the plants. By the time we've all crouched under the tree, every inch of our bodies are soaked through with rain water and the enemy ships are touching down a few yards away from our smoking Mothership. Breathing becomes a chore, thanks to my chattering teeth. Even Matthew's jacket doesn't offer any protection from the damp cold. We won't last long out here.
    "You're trembling," Matthew whispers. We both crawl deeper into the patch of plant-life, Gale and Victoria following suit. The gray light of the sky is replaced by a dark green hue, and the ground suddenly grows firm beneath us. The sweet, earthy smell of wet soil wafts into my nostrils. This is much better. We all hunch over beneath the mercifully large canopy of leaves. I rub my arms and face, hoping to recall some of their color.
    "What happens when the rain stops?" Victoria rasps, fingering her drenched clothes with distaste. "Not that I'm not having the time of my life, or anything."
    "Shut up, won't you?" I mumble. As soon as the comment escapes my mouth, I pause, completely shocked at my outburst. Victoria narrows her eyes at me, and a dwindling annoyance urges me onwards. "No one asked you to come along in the first place. You chose to follow us."
    "And it's a good thing, too," she replies testily, a dangerous gleam entering her hazel gaze. "I might have to save your life again." I open my mouth to send out a smart reply when Matthew shushes us loudly. I transfer my hard gaze to him.
    "I'm trying to--"
    "Be quiet, seriously!" He hisses again. I fall silent, noticing the alarm in his eyes.
    "What is it?" I whisper. Matthew clears away some of the fertile soil beneath us to reveal a gleaming, metal hatch. Tangible fear washes over us, and the skin covered by my damp clothes grows even cooler. I wonder if anyone else can hear my heartbeat.
    "Did your Voices tell you about this?" Victoria whispers. I'm not bothered by the hidden taunt in her question; I'm too scared to notice it.
    "No," I mutter. "Nothing."
    Is this another entrance to the Base? Or is it something less despairing? Maybe this door leads to another hidden resistance, kind of like the Depot.
    "What do we do?" Gale asks.
    "Do we have much of a choice? The Mothership is ruined, we're in the middle of nowhere, and they're coming for us." I find myself struggling to understand how--how--we just happened to come across this hidden doorway.
    "I know you've had a knack for coming up with bad ideas, Enna, but this is taking things to a whole new level." Victoria practically seethes with rage. I try to keep my emotions steady. "Did you not just escape from the world's most dangerous human-Reptilian Base? Did you not just--?"
    "Enna's right." Matthew says, glaring at his mother. "We have no other choice. And we've heard that there are only two ways to enter the Base: the one we used to enter and the one we escaped from."
    "Of course you take her side! Of course, you--"
    A rumbling sound interrupts the argument as the trapdoor starts to slide open. We all try to crawl away, only to find ourselves face-to-face with the muzzle of a gun. A dark voice from inside of the hole booms powerfully through the small clearing, far louder than the pouring rain.
    "Intruders are forbidden. Prepare to die."