Magnus stepped out of the warehouse, his pace slow and heavy. He crossed the yard in silence, then stopped and looked up. The sky above was still smothered in thick black clouds, barely letting any sunlight through. It was the sa sun as before, but now its light felt cruel.
Suddenly, a string of gunshots rang out behind him from inside the warehouse, pulling him out of his thoughts. He didn’t turn around - he knew. Sophia had made her choice. And maybe, she was tougher than he was.
Back in the Humvee, his body was soaked with sticky blood. Grace tried to speak several tis but held herself back. In the end, she just said softly, "Take your clothes off first. I’ll wash them for you later."
She reached out and undid his buttons, helping him take off his shirt, then his boots and pants. In the end, Magnus was left with just his briefs.
*****
Rebar, wire rod, welded pipes, seamless tubes, cold-rolled sheets, dium plates, silicon steel, hot-rolled coils, patterned steel... the plant was packed with enough steel to last forever. Their two box trucks barely loaded a fifth of it.
After filling the cargo holds, Sophia had her team start stacking steel on the rooftops. Glen’s crew had brought over twenty-sothing vehicles, and Sophia cramd each one full - inside, outside, top to bottom. Even so, they only managed to haul away a third of the stock.
She knocked on the Humvee’s back door before climbing in. The mont she saw Magnus sitting there in just his underwear, she snapped, "Magnus! What the hell did you do to my sister? You bastard! You - "
"Stop!" Grace shot her a look. "What the hell is wrong with your brain? His clothes were drenched in blood. It was gross. I told him to strip. If he really ssed with , would he still be wearing anything at all?"
Sophia exhaled hard, glaring. "Since when are you so shaless? Talking like that, seriously?"
" shaless?" Grace turned and snapped back. "You two always ’Sophia this’ and ’Sophia that’, kissing like it’s nothing, right in front of ! And now you’ve got the guts to call shaless? Who’s really crossing the line here, huh?"
The bickering continued, but Magnus didn’t have the energy to listen. He cut in, asking Sophia, "What’s the situation?"
She blinked, getting back to business. "All the vehicles are full, but more than half the steel’s still left behind. We should head back first. I’ll co back this afternoon and clean the place out."
"That much steel - shouldn’t it be enough already?" Magnus frowned.
"Ask your precious Liana, not ," Sophia shot back, her tone sharp.
There she goes again, Magnus thought. How did Liana suddenly beco ’his’? He didn’t bother arguing. She could say he was sleeping with the moon goddess and he’d still let it slide.
He fired up the engine. Ti to head ho.
The ride back took about an hour - longer than the trip out. They’d left with just four vehicles. Now, they had twenty-seven. Twenty-three more than before.
Once inside the bunker, Magnus dug out a fresh set of clothes and went straight to the cold storage room. He used the Water Crystal to give himself a shower. Ice-cold water in the freezing room hit like knives, but it helped clear his head.
He changed and for a mont, it felt like being born again. Around noon, Sophia found Liana. The two talked for a good while before finally deciding to head back to the steel plant and haul the rest of the materials. Liana got busy at once, pulling out five empty trucks for her. Sophia gathered a group and set off.
At that mont, Magnus had just finished a shower and was lying comfortably in bed. He was wrapped in a quilt, head resting on a pillow, one arm behind his head, the other holding a cigarette, quietly lost in thought - mories from his last life replaying in his mind.
Liana and Emily hopped into the vehicle and handed him a small notebook.
"Take a look, Magnus," Liana said.
"What is it?" he glanced at the two.
"Open it, you’ll see," she replied.
Magnus flipped to the first page: a list of all Ice Regint mbers. It had their nas, roles, whether they were Awakened, and even so comnts from teammates.
"Why are you showing this?" he asked, puzzled.
They both sat on the edge of his bed. Liana explained, "We’ve co across a lot of useful talent lately. Look at the last few pages."
Magnus turned to the back of the notebook. Emily added, "Liana and I took inventory this morning. We’ve got nine female doctors, forty-four in finance, three who studied electrical systems, five hairdressers, fifty-two with farming experience, and even one who grew up in a chanic’s shop - claims she can fix anything."
So that’s what they were getting at - valuable people. Magnus asked, "So, what are we still missing?"
"Psychologists." Liana didn’t mince words.
"Co again?" His brows rose.
"Psychologists," Emily repeated with a light sigh. "Plenty of people put on a calm face, but inside, nerves are taut. I’ve tried talking to so with Charlotte, but it hardly worked."
Liana chid in, "That’s not all... there’s sothing you don’t know."
"What don’t I know?"
"A lot." Liana sighed, hesitated, then said, "Co with us. You’ll see."
Magnus grew more curious. Just what the hell were they hiding? He got dressed and followed them out.
They walked to the back of the shelter - the deepest part. There were a dozen or so girls there, all paired up, sitting close, clutching each other. So were even kissing.
They stopped far enough not to be noticed. Liana exhaled, "Girls naturally crave a sense of security. Especially now... Many in the Regint have already started living... as couples."
Magnus was stunned. His mind blanked out. He asked, "So... what now?"
"What now?" Emily snorted, "Either we find a psychologist fast or... you go deal with it yourself. Talk it out. Get them back on track. Those are the only two ways I can think of."
"You want to do what?" Magnus stared at her, eyes wide.
Emily’s tone was firm, "You’re the leader. No psychologist around. Who else if not you? Liana and I won’t cut it. No one else can handle this but you."
User Comments
0 comments from readers