Susan's Plague

Chapter 16 - Sacrifice

A few minutes later the first of the rush hour traffic arrived at one of the far platforms, the Mag-Lev slowly disgorged its contents. Hundreds of people now made there way through the station to various doors and elevators, some moved to other platforms to await a connecting Mag-Lev to continue their commute. A steady flow of arrivals soon had most of the platforms occupied and the station grew very crowded.

The swirling, chaotic mass of Meta citizens was exactly what Daniel was hoping for. "Now's our chance people." Daniel stood. "We will be harder to spot, but it will also be harder for us to see what's going on, stay alert. We don't look like commuters, so we are going to stick out and our appearance will likely cause some commotion, just keep moving. Our platform is 81A, it's almost dead center."

"Don't say 'dead'" Trey joked.

Daniel continued, "It's a trans-core Mag-Lev, it will take you out of here. Once we get you aboard, we'll create a diversion, then we'll board another Mag-Lev and lead the security forces away from you. You all follow?" Everyone signaled in the affirmative. "Okay, good. If we run into Core SecFor, do exactly what I say."

"Once we are out of here, where do we get off?" Miller asked.

"It would be best if you could make it to the Mag Exchange and transfer to a Trans-Continental Lev, but Core egress requires a permit so don't even bother trying to get on as a normal passenger. You might have to improvise, stowaway in cargo or something. I apologize, but I did not have time to put this all together. If you know any people who smuggle goods or people in and out of the Core, now would be the time to reach out to them."

"I might be able to help there." Trey said. "I know some guys, they move stuff in and out. They might be able to help, but they won't do it for free."

"That might be your best bet." Daniel continued. "Try to chose a safe destination, somewhere you can hide. They will definitely be able to track you while you are in Meta, so you need to get out fast. It's best I don't know where that might be. Let's move, I'll take Abi." Without another word Daniel scooped up Abi and exited into the sea of commuters.

Initially, things went better than Sean expected, considering their appearance, they made good progress without drawing too much attention to themselves. Perhaps after a long day at work, people just were too tired to notice, or just too apathetic to really give a damn. As far as he could tell, barely anyone gave them a second glance.

They made it all the way to the seventies platforms before their luck ran out. A MiST detail working transit security exited a Mag-Lev just as they were setting Abi down on a bench so they could all have a break and plan the last leg of their getaway. The timing could not have been worse.

For a moment, time seemed frozen, the security detail just stood there. It appeared they knew they were outmatched by Nine who stood statue-like as oblivious commuters pushed past. The detail seemed reluctant to make a move. The impasse broke as one went for his gun, as the other made a desperate attempt to call in backup. Nine however, was the faster of the three and sent two bullets into the chest of each opponent. The fight was on.

The eruption of gunfire spurred a stampede of commuters who ran in every direction, some diving for cover, others making desperate attempts to escape, bolting for the nearest exit. In seconds, Sean and the group were in a running gun fight as more security personnel poured into the station. The MiST forces fired with reckless abandon, scarcely bothering to identify clear targets, bystanders began taking casualties as the intensity of the fight ramped up.

"Just one row over and 100 meters back!" Daniel yelled over the din.

In the midst of the fighting Miller had manage to pick up a handgun from a fallen MiST agent and was now trading fire with the Core's forces as well. Trey was helping Sean hobble along and Daniel was carrying Abi while engaging the incoming soldiers with his free hand.