Chapter 26

This is where we show them we push back. Atlas stands up and jumps over the railing.

Selina groans, "I hope this works."

"Me too." he says,

Atlas takes a deep breath and walks toward the soldiers, several of them activate and then quickly turn and aim their rifles at him.

He holds his hands up, Selina cringes, turns and moves back to the stairway.

Soon May walks out of a door. She hurries over to Atlas and stops next to the robots.

"You were supposed to join us Atlas."

"You were supposed to be the good guys."

"You were supposed to be dead. Here we are, so many years later, still kicking."

Atlas narrows his eyes, "Where is the assassin?"

"Right now? She's probably a block away."

"You aren't getting out of this unscathed Atlas. I couldn't even stop that. Where is she?"

"Do what you want, kill, torture, I don't care, she's not coming back. She's delivering all this to headquarters."

May glares at him, he can read her easily, even though she's trying to hide it. She doesn't know if he's telling the truth or not.

"I'll ask, one more time. Please don't make me hurt you more than I need to Atlas."

"I already told you where she is. Please don't pretend that you're still the good guys-"

"Atlas we are! They are a threat! To everyone! They have brainwashed you and you don't even realize it! They've hidden the truth from you!...We will find her, and she is going to die...and then you will die publically. We show the world what we do to traitors."

"It's called blood lust May. Now can you please! Just shut. Up."

Atlas shoots ice from his hands and freezes the robots and May almost intanstly.

He can see the fear in her eyes. "Love to stay, but I got people to kill."

Atlas turns and bolts toward the elevator. Almost a minute passes and about ten other robots activate, they turn and fire at him. Atlas bursts through the door that May walked through, hoping it was clear.

It's an elevator lobby. He presses the upward button several times, the door starts opening. Once enough, he jumps in and pushes a random button, then the close door button.

The lobby doors slam open and hands try to grip the doors but it's too late. The elevator starts upward. Atlas sighs and let's his head fall back hard against the wall.

"Atlas? You there?"

"I got away, what's the progress?"

"I'm not even halfway done, but you are attracting a lot of police and security."

"Once you set it up get out, I'll meet you back at the hideout."

"No. I'm not leaving you."

"Shadow, it's gonna get loud by the elevator."

"What about the officers? They aren't supposed to be here."

"Uh...I'll lead em out, then you blow it."

"Okay, meet me at Lincoln Tower, we'll rendezvous there."

"Got it."

Atlas hits the lobby button and steps onto the railing and jumps and hits open the trap door. He grabs the ledge and at an agonizing pace, pulls himself out. And closes the trap door.

"Ugh. Phew. Okay."

He gets to his feet and waits for the elevator to stop, he waits for the door to open, the officers and SWAT shout freeze to the back wall.

"What?! Where is he?!"

They checks the sides and let the elevator close.

"Tell me when they start moving away from the elevator door." Atlas says,

Atlas gets ready to open the door and waits.

"Okay, you're good, move."

Atlas opens the door and drops down softly. He opens the elevator doors and starts out. He walks to the corner and sees the officers entering into the stairway.

"Hey officers!"

They look back at Atlas who is saluting them. "Hey stop!" they shout,

Atlas activates his suit, turns and unholsters his pistol. Police officers pile out, then acting as though he hadn't known so many officers would arrive, he holsters his pistol and bolts out the front doors with the officers shouting after him.

Atlas dashes under the concrete awning and into the street. The officers continue after him, he jumps up, stepping onto the hood of a car that has just barely finished screeching to a halt.

Atlas jumps off onto the other side of the car, he pulls his pistol again and fires once at the officers, purposefully missing.

He looks forward again and stops in front of another building, he turns and runs but stops again when more officers come around the corner.

He turns and bolts the other way down the sidewalk.

Bang-bang-bang!

The officers fire at the concrete wall that Atlas runs alongside but misses. Atlas turns the corner and sprints as fast as he can down the sidewalk.

He looks up and around him, there! He turns and runs into a tall building. Apartments from the looks. He runs to the elevator and pushes the button hard.

Ding!

It slides open, he rushes in and pushes the top floor button repeatedly. Officers rush into the lobby and start toward the elevator as it closes and starts up.

Atlas groans and leans against the wall, he looks at a young adult woman guarding her maybe ten year old brother?

"Ever been framed for a crime?" Atlas asks softly,

The woman shakes her head, her whole body shakes, Atlas shrugs. "It sucks. You two stand right there and you'll be out of the way okay?"

The woman is shaking too much and only stares.

"Hey. Come on, right there, that way you're out of the line of fire, just in case they beat me to the top."

The young woman carefully backs her and her brother up to the skinny wall on the left side of the elevator, opposite side of the floor panel.

"You sure leave an impression." Selina says,

"Eh, make friends, that's how you live. Sorry guys, talking to a friend."

"Don't sell me out idiot."

"I won't, don't worry."

They stand in awkward silence until the elevator dings.

They stand there in awkward silence until the elevator dings. "Stay safe guys." he says,

He bolts out the door and hurries to an apartment door, he kicks it open and rushes to the east facing window. Atlas looks around and grabs a chair from the small table, picks it up and swings it, breaking the glass. He throws the chair aside and backs up.

Ding!

"Crap."

"What?" Selina asks,

"One second." he says loudly as he starts sprinting,

Bullets spray the room. Atlas jumps and flies through the air, a bullet hits his shoulder and tears through it.

He breaks through the other window and rolls to his hands side, he jumps up and rushes away.

He runs to the office elevator and takes it down to the lobby.

"Ugh! I'm good, got hit in my shoulder, I'm fine."

"Where are you? I'm all done here. I'm headed down 6th Avenue."

"I'm in the elevator of a blue office building on Wekner Street. Headed down."

"I'll be there in 30 seconds."

He deactivates his suit and walks out of the elevator and briskly moves out of the building as casually as he can to the corner of the building and rushes around the corner just as Selina rounds another corner and runs up to him.

"Jeez Atlas."

"It's fine, come on, let's go!"

She takes his hand and they do a series of phasing from street to street. After they make it about fifteen streets over, they stop and Atlas pukes while Selina falls back against the wall, lightheaded.

"Oof. You good Atlas?"

"Yeah, come on, let's go home. Blow it."

Selina pulls a detonator and clicks it.

BOOOM!

They walk to the corner and peek out, watching the tower beginning tolean and fall. It smacks against the ground, smoke and dust and dirt shoots into the sky.

"Lets go home." she says,

Occasionally phasing while they run, they make it back to their apartment building.

"You did good Atlas."

He smiles, "Agh. Not bad yourself."

"You're getting pale, we'll patch it up once we get back."

"You look good Selina."

She jolts and pulls her hair down over her scar.

"I'm serious Selina. You're a beautiful woman." he says,

"Thanks Atlas."

Ding!

Atlas groans as he pushes off the wall, Selina puts his arm around her and she helps him to the apartment.

As soon as they open the door,

"Shadow!"

"Atlas! Holy crap!"

"You two need to explain right now!" Neo shouts angrily,

Ashe glares at them too, then they see Atlas's shoulder. "Can we talk about it after?"

They look at him with fear and sympathy and hurry to get a medkit.