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Somewhere
under a Bulgarian Monastery
Kevin
didn't know exactly the moment he realized who Jeffrey was
but at least he'd discovered the truth before he killed
the kid. And he could have done just that a few minutes
ago. Easily. Introductions had been made and Boswell tended
to Scarlett who was still unconscious and bleeding heavily.
Luckily he knew about trauma injuries and stopped the bleeding,
for a time. That left Jeffrey and Phoenix time to chat,
and Kevin didn't like the direction of their conversation.
"Kevin
the spy." Phoenix said, testing the name. "Somehow it doesn't
seem, I don't know - mysterious enough. What about Nick?
Ever thought of yourself as a Nick? Now *there's* a spy
name worth having."
"He's
right. It does lose something in the translation." Jeffrey
smiled, attempting to joke along with Phoenix. Somehow the
comment didn't come off as humourous as Phoenix's had.
Causing
an agent to become hostile
wasn't something Jeffrey planned. It was something that
just happened to him - often. And right now was one of those
golden moments in Jeffrey Sogard's life. Kevin glared at
him with a far from delighted expression on his face.
"When
I get to heaven I'll tell my old man that his pop's name
wasn't good enough for you." He didn't know what it was
that irked him the most. Jeffrey slamming his name or something
that lie deeper in his psyche. Before he realized it, Kevin
was balling up Jeffrey's collar. His fist tightly clutching
the red cotton fabric. When Jeffrey's eyes turned back from
scowling at Phoenix, they tried to refocus on an object
that was much closer in proximity than before. Kevin's face
was inches from his own.
"I'm
sorry," he said, trying to escape the bigger and better
trained adversary. "I didn't mean it like that. I was just
joking around. Like him." He thumbed his finger at Phoenix
who feigned a 'who me?' act of innocence.
In
his frustration not only at Jeffrey but at the situation
they found themselves in, Kevin pushed the young controller.
Not hard, but just enough to unbalance him. He tumbled over
an askew I-beam and fell face first into a pile of what
had to be one hundred year old dust. It mushroomed a cloud
of dirty powder into his face.
Sputtering
and coughing, Jeffrey tried to return to a standing position
with some of his dignity left intact. He wasn't hurt, not
physically. Maybe just his pride, but he'd live.
As
he attempted to get up a second time, his hand closed over
a mound of loose Earth. His fingers gripped the unstable
ground. As he steadied himself, the digits inched deeper
into the combination of rubble and soil. He came back up
with a handful of dirt clumps and rocks. Using his fingers
like a sifter, Jeffrey shook away the remaining clods until
only a metal object was left in the palm of his hand.
It
was a necklace attached to a crucifix. A very strangely
designed crucifix.
The
gasp from behind him was barely audible but definitely there.
Kevin forcibly snatched the necklace from Jeffrey's hand.
Upon further examination, he found exactly what he thought
he might.
"It's
Faith's," he said, his voice tight with emotion.
Just
then the building moaned, as if it too was saddened by Faith's
disappearance. The rumbling began anew followed by a dirt
shower. Huge parts of the ceiling came hurtling at them
like meteors from outer space.
It
was definitely time to leave.
Kevin
knew the drill. Get the innocent to safety, then search
for survivors. But no one said they couldn't do both at
the same time. He began barking orders like a drill sergeant.
"Jeffrey
you take Mike. Boswell carry Scarlett and Phoenix, you're
with me."
"Me?
You're leaving *me* here to die by lethal rock pelting?
No way, Jose. Not me." Phoenix watched helplessly as the
rest of their group made their way through the secret passage
and up to the surface. "Why me? It's not like I'm Mr. Gung
Ho or anything. *I* wasn't the one who talked me into this
cockamamy adventure in the first place. So, tell me, why
should *I* have to die in it?"
Kevin
placed his hand on the babbling boy's shoulder trying to
calm him.
"I
trust you," Kevin said, with more honesty in his voice than
he'd felt in a long time. "This is my kid sister we're talking
about. Michaela and Scarlett are both injured. Jeffrey and
Boswell don't know the area. That leaves just you and me.
It's up to us. We have to save the day."
"We
don't need to do any day saving. How about we save our own
butts and..." Phoenix started for the door but Kevin's stern
glance stopped him.
"Stop
talking and look for her!" Kevin meant business.
"Right.
Looking. That's me..."
"Shut
up! You can search faster if you just be quiet!"
"I'm
sorry!" he stressed, with an anxious edge to his voice.
"When I'm nervous I babble. One of my few foibles in life.
Sue me!"
For
a few quiet minutes they searched. Neither finding what
they hoped to see but both feeling the pressure put upon
them.
"I'm
sure Faith is perfectly fine. She's a trooper. I doubt a
little thing like a mountain caving in would get her down,"
Phoenix said, noticing the urgency with which Kevin hunted.
"Yes,
Faith is a trooper but she's hurt. You said that yourself.
Don't you want to help me make sure she sees another day?"
"Okay,
all right. Yes. Where was Jeffrey when he found that necklace?"
Kevin pointed the way. Phoenix drew closer to the area of
loose dirt and brought his torch closer. The light played
on an ornate cross lying across a huge hole.
"Houston,
we have a problem," said the younger man.
Kevin
and Phoenix both moved their torches so the light angled
down the gaping rupture in the ground. "There she is!" Phoenix
yelled. "But she's not moving."
As
he moved his light closer, the dirt around his feet crumbled.
Fumbling for more stable ground, he lost his balance. The
torch flew from his hand extinguishing as it made its journey
across the what was left of the room. As the floor disappeared
beneath him, he grabbed onto the only thing within his reach.
The large ornate cross covering the hole.
Phoenix
tried to find a hand hole but the cross was slippery and
the ornate features didn't lend much to holding on for dear
life. The rumbling which had momentarily stopped during
his fall suddenly started up again. Then a horrible thing
happened. The entire left section of the room collapsed
in on itself.
Phoenix
watched at Kevin performed an intricate dive roll landing
on the other side of the hole. He was safe. At least for
the time being. The rest of the monastery was bound to come
tumbling down in the next few minutes. Somehow even in his
terror, Phoenix knew this was his moment of truth.
"Get
out of here," he yelled. "If I live and she's alive..."
he said as he searched for a better hand position. "I'll
bring her home to youuuuuu." His last word echoed through
the darkness of the hole as he lost his grip.
"NO!"
Kevin screamed. He lunged forward but it was too late. Phoenix
was gone. His form angling awkwardly at the bottom of the
pit.
"Go."
Kevin could barely hear the whisper, and he didn't know
if it was really Phoenix's voice or just his own wishful
thinking. "Go. Save yourself."
Kevin
made a mad dash for the passageway as the room imploded.
To
Be Continued in
Season
Two: C O N V E R G E N C E !
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