Page 6 of Semi-Human

It feels good being outside again, where the air is fresh and nature is untamed, like in the old photos I used to obsess over growing up. But the people I march with are not my squad, and they are not making an effort to help me feel welcome. Caden walks at the front of our nine-member group while I’m at the rear with Finn. We gave him some gear for protection, but no weapons. In the morning, he walks quietly, but by noon, he doesn’t shut up.

“What’s the farthest you ever shot someone?”

“About four thousand feet,” I say.

He whistles. “Damn, that’s far. The Raiders tried to teach me how to shoot, but I hated the feel of the guns and the noise. I have sensitive ears, maybe ’cause they’re big.”

I hold back a smile. “Your ears are not… very big.”

“I prefer knives, but you do need to get very close.”

“Would you two shut up?”

Perez barks at us. I can only see the bottom part of his face under his helmet. His square jaw resembles a brick.

We continue to walk in silence until we stop to rest for the night. It’s not cold, so there’s no need for tents. Winter is a few months away, and I’m already dreading Colorado’s chilly nights. I never understood the concept of seasons until I joined the Defenders and started leaving the Hive.

I spread my sleeping bag on the ground a bit farther from the rest, and Finn lays his next to mine.

Caden divides us into guard duties, assigning the last shift to me. I’ll wake up early but get to sleep uninterrupted. Caden and I haven’t spoken all day, and I don’t think I’ve ever spent so much time with him in silence. I’m starting to regret my statement about permanently joining his squad. It was more an act of defiance against Dino than a calculated decision, and I already miss my hard-won bond with Ace’s squad.

“What’s wrong?”

I turn to Finn, who’s sitting on his sleeping bag close by. “Nothing. Go eat.”

He twitches his lips at the rations waiting at the heart of our makeshift camp.

“They won’t bite you,” I say.

“I know.”

Yet he doesn’t move, so I get up to bring food for both of us, even though I don’t have much of an appetite. The squad stops talking when I approach, making this awkward. I grab two rations and return.

“Did you have a fight with them or something?”

Finn asks quietly as he unwraps his rations.

“No. I don’t really know them.”

“Is it because you and Caden are… close?”

I give him a warning look. “It’s probably because I’m here instead of one of their squad.”

I spread my canned food on the ground. I’d be lying if I said I missed that bland taste after a week in the Hive.

“They gave me better food at the brig,”

Finn mumbles.

I snicker. “I’m sure.”

Caden spreads lamps around the premises. Their light only reaches a short distance, making it impossible to spot from afar. Once done, he approaches us. “You two okay?”

“Yes,”

I say, stiffer than intended.

“Stop talking so much,”

he tells Finn. “Joshy isn’t here to entertain you.”

The chatter in the background dies at once.

Caden sighs and shakes his head. I’ve given up on asking him to call me Josh, so he has no one to blame but himself.

He turns around to face his squad. “Yeah, I called him Joshy. I’ll die saving each of your ugly asses, but I’m gonna try a bit harder for him. Get over it.”

With that out of the way, he tilts his head and says, “Let’s go for a walk.”

“Can I come too?”

Finn asks.

“No. Stay here and practice not talking.”

We climb to a ridge that provides a good view of the vast valley below us. The sun has almost set, but I can still see the sprawling beauty of Colorado’s nature around us. It feels unfair for some people to go through life without experiencing this wonder. I’m glad there are more Hivers who dare to go outside these days.

We sit on the ground, our legs dangling over the ridge’s edge. Caden hands me his binoculars, and I spot a column of smoke at the foot of a rocky hill in the distance. “You think it’s them?” I ask.

“It fits the location Finn gave us. I want to reach them from the back of that hill, or we’ll just have trees for cover.”

“They might hear us climbing.”

“We’ll just have to be quiet. I’ll gag Finn.”

“He’s not so bad.”

“He was—and maybe still is—a Raider.”

“I know, but if he’s hiding something, he might let it slip by talking so much.”

“True.”

He clears his throat. “Listen, I’m sorry about my squad. I didn’t give them much of a heads-up before asking you to join.”

I seize the opportunity and ask, “Can I be honest?”

“Always.”

“I don’t think I should join your squad.”

His jaw tightens. “I never promised you’d fit in instantly.”

“It’s not about that. I don’t like treating you like a lieutenant and having to analyze everything I want to say.”

“It’s First Lieutenant.”

I nudge him with my elbow. “I’m serious. Are you angry?”

He sighs. “No, you’re right. But I am going to start writing to you.”

“Fucking finally!”

“Shh.”

He puts his arm around my shoulders and leans his head against mine. “Dino says the Free Cities are also bringing in the heat against the Raiders. It’s only a matter of time before we take them down. I don’t want to be a Defender forever.”

It’s the first time I’ve heard him say something like that. Out of everyone I know, he seems born to wear the black uniform. I love to imagine a world where the Defenders are no longer needed, but I can’t help but fear that soon, the Raiders will be the least of our worries.

*

The following day, we reach the rocky hill a few hours before dusk. The heavy clouds make the heat bearable, but it’s still a warm July day. Seasons might be meaningless in the Hive, but out here, they affect everything.

Caden wants Finn to climb with us, but he warns him to stay a few feet behind and keep his mouth shut. We leave every nonessential piece of gear behind and begin climbing, keeping a safe distance between us. It’s hard to climb with my sniper rifle, but I’ve done that many times. We need to plan every step we take, as even a small sliding rock can start an avalanche.

We hear the Raiders before we reach the peak. For them to be so loud means they don’t feel threatened, probably because we Defenders never venture to these parts. Upon reaching the peak, we walk low to the northern edge, spreading out to avoid drawing attention. I lie on my stomach, the thermal vision of my visor filling with orange. There’s a big bonfire at the heart of the camp, with Raiders standing nearby.

“I count about thirty,”

Caden says over the comm.

I raise my visor and aim my rifle, using the scope since I don’t fully trust thermal vision, especially with a big fire messing with the sensors.

“Check out your three,”

Caden says. “Something’s weird with the heat signature in that cage.”

“Checking.”

I lower my visor and immediately see what he means. There’s someone in that cage, but what should have been yellow and orange is glowing with a faint yellowish haze mixed with a bit of blue. I raise the visor again and look through the scope. The iron cage is attached to a buggy. Those filthy things always make the air smell like gasoline, but at least they’re loud enough to be heard from miles away. I tense at the sight of the man in the cage, though his funky heat signature should have been a warning by itself.

They say that all Semi-Humans have copper hair, but who can really tell after all these years? Yet the man sitting with his arms behind his back and his head bowed has striking copper hair. He’s wearing a blue windcoat and faded gray pants.

“It’s him,”

I say. “The Semi-Human.”

“Is he hurt?”

I’m startled by the sound of Finn’s voice right next to me. “Get back,”

I hiss, and he moves back to hide behind a rock.

“They have sleeping bags out,”

Caden says. “They’ll be staying the night.”

I scan the camp again. “I think there might be a cave below us.”

“There is,”

Finn says from behind the rock. “They keep weapons there.”

“Finn says they have weapons in the cave,” I update.

“What’s the plan, then?”

Perez asks over the comm.

“We’ll wait until dawn to see if anything happens. If nothing does, we’ll take them out before they wake up and rescue the Semi.”

“And if they try to move him somewhere else?”

a guy named Andrea asks.

“We can’t catch up with a buggy, so let’s hope they stay here. Joshy, keep scanning the area. The rest of you, spread out. Make sure you have a route down in case we need to retreat. Move.”

The rest scatter while I remain on my stomach, watching the Semi-Human who appears to be unconscious. I never thought I’d be so close to one of them. Across the camp, the Raiders eat, drink, and talk loudly around the fire. Some seem my age, but most are older—old enough to be among those who attacked Unity during Skyfall. We didn’t get all of them that day.

Finn lies down next to me. Before I can stop myself, I ask, “How many settlements did you raid?”

He seems startled by my bluntness. “I stayed back whenever I could.”

“And when you couldn’t?”

Anger flashes in his eyes. “When I couldn’t, I found somewhere to hide. I’m not like them.”

“Hey, keep your voice down.”

Caden lies down on my other side.

Finn looks away, hurt in his eyes. My outburst was uncalled for, but before I can apologize, Caden asks, “You think they drugged him? He hasn’t moved an inch.”

I look through the scope at the motionless Semi-Human. He’s still sitting with his head bowed, his shoulder-length copper hair covering his face. “Maybe we were wrong about them.”

“Meaning?”

“Maybe they’re no longer that strong. This one wasn’t born when they started the program, so maybe he’s just… normal.”

Caden nods. “Could be. If there’s nothing special about him, we’ll be risking our asses for nothing, but there’s no way of knowing until we try. Finn, do you recognize anyone down there?”

“I know this group, but I don’t see their leader, Buck.”

“Shit,”

Caden hisses. “I heard that name. Bad news.”

“Very bad, but they wouldn’t have been drinking so much if he were here. He’s supposed to be strict.”

“Okay. It’s about to get dark. We should—”

He sharply turns his head back. I’m about to ask what’s wrong, but then I hear it too.

We crouch-walk to the other side. Caden raises his binoculars while I watch through my scope. Thin columns of smoke move quickly toward us, and the sounds of engines grow stronger by the second.

The rest of the squad catches on, and my comm fills with nervous chatter.

“Quiet,”

Caden sharply says. “They’re moving too fast for us to slip away unnoticed. We’re staying here and keeping our heads down.”

“Do we still rescue the Semi if there are more Raiders?”

Perez asks.

After a few seconds, Caden says, “No, this isn’t a suicide mission.”

Four buggies arrive within minutes. I count fourteen well-armed Raiders climbing out before I see something that makes me gasp. “Is that…?”

“Buck,”

Finn says next to me.

The man is six and a half feet tall, with biceps as wide as my head. His dark hair and beard are long and unkempt.

I look through my scope. “Are those… scales?”

“He’s a mutant,”

Finn says.

Buck is barking orders and getting his people in line. He doesn’t like them drinking on the job. They seem terrified of him, and I can’t blame them. I hold my breath as he walks toward the cage, gripping the iron bars. I can’t see his lips, but I can tell he’s talking to the Semi-Human and getting no response, even when he rattles the cage. He gives up and returns to his men.

My heart drops when he points to our hill. I read on his lips the words, “Go watch.”

Three of the Raiders walk toward the side of the hill, and I have no doubt they’re heading up here.

“Three Raiders coming our way,”

I say over the comm. “What do we do?” Staying here will get us caught, but climbing down in a hurry might make too much noise.

“We hide,”

Caden says. “First chance we get, we take down the three Raiders, then make our way out of here. Perez and Stu, put your suppressors on. We each take one shot, and we make it count. The rest of you, find cover.”

We walk low until we take cover behind a formation of high rocks. Finn crouches next to me and whispers, “Don’t let them take me, Josh. They’ll know I betrayed them. I’d rather you shoot me instead.”

I can hear in his voice that he means it. I nod. “Just don’t try to be a hero.”

“Me? Never.”

“Shh.”

I peek from the side of the stone and see Caden, Perez, and Stu ready behind their covers. It’s rare for any mission to go according to plan, but we’re outnumbered four to one, and they have a mutant.

It takes another few minutes for the three Raiders to appear as they climb toward us. One of them is complaining about the climb, saying he’s too old for this shit, then another Raider tells him he’s just too old to be alive. They laugh, but it’s short-lived.

“Now,”

Caden says over the comm.

Three bullets find their marks, shattering three skulls. Two of the Raiders go down immediately, but the third one staggers back. Right before he’s about to hit the ground, he lifts his rifle in the air and fires.

A bullet hits Perez, who falls back with blood splashing from his throat.

“Shit. Get ready,”

Caden says as the Raiders below shout in alarm.

I look at Finn, who seems close to passing out. We shouldn’t have brought him here. “Get Perez’s weapons,”

I say. “Only use them when you’re in immediate danger. Stay back with your head down for as long as you can.”

“You promised—”

“I won’t let them catch you.”

But if I’m dead, it will be up to him to end this under his own terms.

Finn nods, his bottom lip trembling. “Please be careful.”

I ditch my cover and lie down on my stomach at the edge of the peak, watching through the scope as Raiders run frantically below. We will lose daylight soon, but we have height on our side and more places for cover.

I want to take out Buck first, but I can’t see him, so I find another target instead. “Permission to engage.”

“Give them hell,”

Caden says. “For Ruben.”

I swallow. “For Ruben.”

I narrow my eyes at a buggy’s oil tanks. The sounds of commotion below fade into distant echoes. I take two deep breaths before slowly squeezing the trigger. The bright explosion is deafening, coloring the world with bright orange and red. The rising screams of terror are the music I’ve been waiting to hear.

*

“I’m hit!”

someone shouts through the comm, but I block it out since he isn’t Caden, and I can’t help.

I lose count of how many Raiders I’m taking down, but I haven’t missed a single target. Even in the midst of chaos, I don’t rush a single shot since I don’t have unlimited bullets. The first buggy I hit took down three Raiders who stood too close, while the second took out four as it turned into a ball of fire. They quickly learned to stay away from the rest of the buggies. Between shots, I keep searching for Buck, but I can’t find him, though he must be close.

My comm is filled with panic and death, but I block everything out and focus on killing. There are still too many Raiders alive, and we’re minutes from getting overrun. Someone throws a grenade, but it goes wild and explodes without taking down any of the Raiders.

“Joshy, the Semi,”

Caden says.

I move my scope to the cage, where the Semi-Human stirs. I almost forgot about him, even though he’s the reason we’re here. He slides his cuffed hands under his legs. I gawk as he snaps the iron shackles like they’re made of paper. With his hands free, he slides forward and kicks the door of the cage, sending it flying.

I should continue shooting Raiders, but I can’t stop following the Semi-Human as he stands and cranes his neck. A second later, he breaks into a run, and no one has ever moved so goddamn fast. The Raiders don’t notice him; their focus is on the hill from which bullets continue to rain. He starts picking them off one by one, using his hands to snap their necks with the same ease he snapped his shackles. It’s brutal and efficient—I can almost hear the bones snap.

When they finally notice what’s happening, they aim their weapons away from us and start shooting at him, but there’s barely any daylight left, and the Semi is a blurry shape shifting from cover to cover as if he knows where the bullets will hit.

“Behind us!”

Caden yells, breaking my trance.

I turn around, shocked to discover that besides Caden, Stu, and Finn, everyone else is dead. I make my way to the other side of the peak, walking past the bodies of my brothers and sisters in arms. I crouch and spot Raiders climbing up, but it’s hard to see them clearly with the sun setting on the other side. They also make for harder targets since they don’t stand straight and have plenty of cover. I fire three shots, but only one hits, sending the Raider stumbling down the hill.

Buck is climbing among his men, wearing a helmet and battered armor. There’s an opening between his shoulders and his head that I can try to hit. I reach for my ammo pouch to reload, but I’m empty. Panic seizes my throat, but I hold it back and grab my pistol. After using the sniper rifle for the last thirty minutes, the pistol feels like a pitiful toy. I try not to look at the bodies nearby, but I can’t shake their presence. My adrenaline slips away, leaving me drained and nauseous. I need my sniper rifle to survive this.

Finn comes over and shakes me. “What the hell is wrong with you? Buck is fucking coming!”

He’s right. I push away the haze from my brain. “I’m okay.”

Stu hurries toward us, but he’s walking too high, and I’m not surprised when he gets hit in the face. I should be horrified, but I’ve seen similar things before, happening to people I was much closer to.

Caden reaches Finn and me, his face covered in sweat and his helmet dented from a bullet hit. It dawns on me I might be moments away from losing him, and I’m petrified.

“They’re too damn close. We need to get down,”

Caden says. “It doesn’t look like they’re climbing from the east, so let’s try our luck there. Once we’re down, we’ll lose them in the trees. Joshy, watch our six, but mind your steps.”

“Understood.”

He pulls out our last grenade, plucks out the pin, then throws it down without risking moving from cover. The ground shakes as the grenade explodes, and through the ringing in my ears, I hear Raiders scream.

We take our chance.

Caden and Finn climb down ahead of me, trying to be quick while minding their steps. I glance back every few seconds, relieved not to see Raiders behind us. That grenade might have taken care of them, but I’m not about to wait and see.

Caden reaches the bottom first, and Finn isn’t far behind. I turn to look back one last time, and my heart drops. Buck stands at the top of the hill, a massive demon against the darkening sky. He’s aiming a rifle at Caden’s location. I lift my pistol and shoot, but it goes wide. At least it’s enough to catch Buck’s attention. He aims his rifle at me and shoots back. Since it’s dark and I’m crouching, he misses me, but his next shot lands close enough for me to lose my footing. I almost slip down the hill, but I catch a nearby rock just in time, losing my pistol in the process.

I move a few feet aside, hoping to step out of Buck’s view. Once he’s no longer in my line of sight, I resume my descent, trying to step carefully as my heart pounds. My palms are sweaty, making my grasp less secure. I’m getting close to the bottom when bullets land next to me. Rock shards fly at my face, and I lose my footing. The world spins before I bang my head on the ground.

Pain explodes, blurring my vision. Through blinking lights, I see Caden and Finn disappearing past the tree line.

Mission accomplished, I think, then darkness consumes me.