I remember Devlan telling me years ago that these fences travel the entire length of the cities’ boundaries, and yet are able to carry so much electricity that it can light the entire city for days. The problem with this much power being generated is that it gets weaker the further away it is from its source. To keep the fence electrified along a massive span you need relay boxes to help carry the electricity across the great distance. If I can find the closest relay then I can knock out the power to this part of the fence. I tell Quin my plan, but he doesn’t seem interested.
“How did you get in last time?” I ask, as I rummage through the crate Quin has set next to him.
“We had someone from the Farm Borough helping us. He and several others dug a tunnel under the fence.”
“What happened to him?”
“He escaped to the Wasteland with us only to be caught and executed several months later.”
“How are you planning to get in this time?”
“I’ll think of something as soon as I’m done eating.”
I manage to come up with a pair of wire cutters, so I leave the satchel behind, take out the goggles, remove the Beta gun, and begin my walk. My timing must be precise as I’m sure the power will be turned back on quickly after it’s lost. Once I have the power down, my plan is to cut an opening wide enough to drive the truck through. Quin will need to drive the delivery truck back to the Refuge while I drive his vehicle.
I find what I’m looking for ten minutes later.
The relay is at the top of the fence, coiled amongst the razor wire. The box is approximately the size of a book, five inches by eight inches. I put the goggles on so I can see better, drop the wire cutters at my feet, aim the gun at the box, and fire. My hit is dead on and sparks shower down on me. I no longer hear the humming from the fence, so I begin cutting the large opening, hurrying so as not to get electrocuted when the power comes back on. If they’re able to repair it, the electricity will be weak until they can replace the box, but will still cause massive injury.
I clip the last rung in the fence and yank the portion that is loose from the rest of the barrier just as the power kicks back on. Picking up my items, I walk back over to Quin, who is still sitting and eating.
“What was that?” he asks, as I drop the wire cutters back into the crate. “The power was off and then came back on, nearly shocking me.” I notice the small hole he had managed to create in the links. “It would have been bigger, but someone ran off with my wire cutters,” he says angrily.
“Relax and grab the crate,” I say, as I pick up my satchel and thermoses.
We walk down to the hole in the fence then carefully make our way through it. Our next obstacle is overtaking the truck. I remove the detonators from the satchel and walk about a half mile down the road. The detonators can be set to be used as an explosive or signal. I flip the switch on the bottom of the device to indicate signal and place it in the center of the road, then walk back down to the opening in the fence where Quin is hunched behind one of the support columns for the shuttle.
“When the light begins to blink on the detonator,” I state, as I point to where I’d just been, “we’ll know the truck has passed that location. Between here and there it will only take them about five minutes.” I point in the direction of the hangar, far off in the distance. “We should move farther down, closer to the hangar.”
“All right, but we will need some kind of sign to indicate when the vehicle is approaching since we will be sitting on opposite sides of the road.”
I think about it as we make our way down the road, stopping two hundred yards from the hangar, giving us an extra hundred yards before the movement of the truck activates the security cameras and lights. Digging in my satchel, I come up with the metal container holding the last of the Quarum and hand it to Quin. He doesn’t ask, he just puts it in the front pocket of his pants. That’s when I notice the Levin gun sticking out of the side of his waistband.
“Give me that,” I scream at him, lunging for the weapon.
He grabs me by the shoulders, slamming me to the ground.
“No,” he says angrily, face red with heat.
My head hurts from the impact with the ground, so I can’t completely focus on his expression.
“You’ve been holding out on me. You’ve had this with you the whole time and never said anything. This is the gun that damaged your arm, isn’t it?”
“Yes,” I whimper.
His grip is so strong on my arms I can’t feel my hands.
“Shoot me with it.”
“What? Are you crazy?”
“Don’t be stupid, I’m just like you, you already know that! I’m built like you except for the Quantum Stream. This is the weapon that gave it to you, that brought your body to life. If it worked on you it can work on me.”
I stare at him, dumfounded at his request.
“You’re mad,” I mumble, unable to speak clearly due to the trembling in my body. “You don’t mean it…you don’t know what you are asking for.”
“Yes, I do.”
“I won’t…I won’t do it.”
“Fine,” he says, removing the gun from his waistband and aiming it at my head. “If all it takes is a simple pull of the trigger then that’s what I’ll do.”
I try and move, but he has me pinned. My heart begins
