Chapter 17 itatviliuryoaltmoeecradahdhtsisnselaovhreaiacndrshwlndshwye Since their visitors were not expected much before noon, Myles, Sarah and Tanya spent a rather leisurely hour or so after breakfast talking with Sir Walter. Sir Walter's phone lay on the table, an occasional sound indicating a message, most of which were thus far routine. They would, as usual, be alerted when the visitors were a short distance away. "Do you believe they will go through with the negotiations?" Myles asked Sir Walter. "Hard to say at this point" Sir Walter replied. "They're shaken enough just now, they may want to do it as a delaying tactic. Or they may do nothing and wait until we make another move. It's entirely possible we may end up with a de facto truce, if they're afraid to take certain actions out of fear of our retaliation. We may end up with not much happening for quite a while. Which isn't bad for us, and in their view only delays the inevitable. They always plan for the long term. But they don't have the whole picture." "What is the rest of it?" asked Sarah. "We, that is the League, are not the only resistance." replied Sir Walter. "There are a lot of small dissident organizations, and we have no control over them. Since the government can't know whether any particular person or organization is associated with the League, they will likely be reluctant to act against them, no matter what they do. And added to that are the various militias. Most of them are amateurs, driven more by emotion than reason, but there are some, some fairly large ones, which are quite professional and capable of causing some serious problems. "So if the government continues to tighten its grip on the people, even without antagonizing the league again, they may still stir up quite a lot of trouble there. The Northern Alliance, which includes a number of large militias in the north and northwest, seems determined to carry out some sort of operation if the constitution is revised in an unfavorable way. And it is rather certain that it will be, otherwise they wouldn't bother. And the Southwest Militia, larger in membership, has expressed the same intention. So there could be a war going on soon, no matter what we do. "Which would be rather convenient if it coincided with the emergence of Atlantis. With our own government distracted by an insurrection, and the remainder of the world dealing with the coastal disasters it might cause, we would have relatively little interference in moving in and claiming it, and preparing to defend it." "How would that be done?" Sarah asked. "There is a plan, one that has been in place for a long time. Chris - Sir Christopher as he's called, being one of the Knights - is our expert on the matter. He believes, based on research - some of it rather apocryphal, to be sure - that what lies beneath that north Atlantic plateau is indeed a place that was once populated, and will return to the surface in much the condition in which it disappeared. As soon as dry land is available, ships and aircraft from freeholds around the world will converge and unload personnel, building materials and equipment, and all that is needed to quickly establish a population. And of course, to plant the flag of Atlantis." He looked out the window at the courtyard, where a flag was visible. A circle of nine silver stars surrounded a larger gold star, on a dark blue field. Sarah and Tanya looked - they had seen the flag before but had not known its significance. "What happens after that is, like so many things, anyone's guess. But the more distractions there are, the better our chances of success. Once established, we will be very difficult to dislodge, and since much of our force remains hidden here, and in other countries as well, we can influence events from within the walls of our enemies. "If there is anything to be desired about a corrupt world, it is that you can bribe an unscrupulous person to do something right as well as to do something wrong. Or at least, perhaps to do nothing at all, if that will serve." Sir Walter got up and went out into the courtyard, the others following. He lit a cigar, and Myles did the same. Sarah had a pack of Myles' personalized cigarettes, and she and Tanya lit up. "We have these little islands of tranquility" said Sir Walter. "In our Freeholds, in our personal estates. We enjoy them when we can, never knowing how long things will be sufficiently calm to continue doing so. I suppose you miss yours, Myles, much as I miss Elizabeth and our girls. And of course, there are times, and will be, when we don't know how much longer we will be around." He was saying what Myles felt, and he knew Sarah had for quite a while been accepting her role in something that, weeks ago, she would never have imagined happening. He looked over at them, engaged in some quite conversation. Tanya thus far remained an enigma. She was quiet, affectionate, undemanding. She seemed quite fond of him, and of course was quite attached to Sarah. He enjoyed her company, but hadn't yet had any thoughts of what their future relationship might be. A little while, though, he might begin to have a better picture of things. If her brother arrived in relatively undamaged condition, that worry would be lifted and perhaps more of her personality might be revealed. He suspected it much or her reserved nature was attributable to that. Sir Walter's phone buzzed, and he looked at it. "Time to go" he said. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Myles shoved a slimmed-down version of one of his .45 Colt revolvers into a holster on the back of his belt. The day was sufficiently cool and breezy for him to wear a windbreaker to cover it. The five inch barrel and five-shot cylinder made it easier to conceal, but it was still competent for most uses. He had been wearing the usual shoulder rig, but with only one gun instead of two, as there was not much danger in the present situation. He went with Sir Walter out to the front of the headquarters building. Jerry and Alan were already there, with a couple of Bobcats. They rode out the the landing zone, where a squad was assembled, awaiting the arrival of their visitors. Before long the two helicopters had landed, and Ingram emerged with a couple of aides. Colonel Williams emerged and stood by the craft in which he had arrived. "We have your man, Mr. Webster" said Ingram. "He's in the helicopter where Colonel Williams is standing. How do you want to do this?" "Have the colonel bring him over" said Sir Walter. "I wish to speak with him privately, which will require going inside for a while. My men will keep you company. Afterward, we can discuss the transportation of your personnel." Ingram motioned to Colonel Williams, who turned to the open door of the helicopter and spoke to someone inside. After a few moments a young man emerged and came down the steps. He was dressed in khaki, from a distance looking like a military uniform, but with no hat. He was wearing dark sunglasses. Myles watched him as he walked beside Colonel Williams. He seemed healthy, his walk normal, head up and looking around, seemingly studying his environment. He carried two bags, each about the size of an overnight bag. Sir Walter motioned to Colonel Williams, and he brought Tyler over. "What is your name?" he asked Tyler. "Tyler Webster." the man replied. "Do you have your ID?" Sir Walter asked. Tyler reached for his shirt pocket, produced a small folder with a driver's license and some other cards. The photo matched reasonably well, probably better than many. Sir Walter handed it back, then said "Will you come this way please? This won't take long." Tyler seemed almost startled by the courtesy. He probably hadn't been treated so well by his captors, Myles thought. They got into one of the Bobcats, Myles in the driver's seat, while Sir Walter indicated to Tyler he should ride in front. The ride back to the headquarters building was sufficiently brief that the lack of conversation did not become awkward. They went inside and to a small office on the ground floor, and sat down. "Would you like anything to drink, cigarette, anything?" asked Sir Walter. "Some water would be good" Tyler replied. "Myles, why don't you get started - I'll be right back" said Sir Walter. Myles, wondering what Tyler would think if he knew that one of the most important men on earth at this time was fetching him a drink. "Tyler, my name is Myles. You are in the company of an organization that has nothing to fear from the government. You are quite safe here. But before we go further, do you have any family in the area?" Tyler quickly and unhesitatingly gave him an account of his parents and siblings, which matched perfectly what Tanya had given him. "When was the last time you saw Tanya?" Myles asked. "I'm not sure, since I don't know what day is is. It was just a couple of days before they grabbed me. We both live in Springdale, so we see each other quite often." Sir Walter returned with a carafe filled with ice water, and some glasses, poured some for Tyler. "Everything look good?" asked Sir Walter. "I believe so" said Myles. "I guess it's time." "Tyler, there's someone I want you to meet." said Myles. "Come with me." Myles led them out into the area by the elevators, called Sarah. "Could you bring Tanya down?" he asked when she answered, watching Tyler closely. "Tanya's here?" he asked. "How? Where am I?" "As I told you," said Myles. "Somewhere safe. Just a few more seconds." Shortly the doors of one elevator opened, and Tanya and Sarah emerged. Tanya saw her brother, and without stopping wonder what was happening, ran to him. The two embraced tightly, holding each other for a long time, Tanya's face wet with tears, dampening her silky black hair. Tyler appeared more composed, but it was evident he was holding his emotions in check. Eventually, they let go, but remained standing together, holding each other's hands. Tanya turned to Myles. "How did you do it?" she asked. "I thought I would never see Tyler again." "We've been trying to find out what happened to Tyler since he disappeared." said Myles. "We knew who did it - we just got lucky. We have a lot of prisoners from the raid - our first condition for releasing them was for them to find Tyler and release him." Tanya came over to Myles and hugged him, stood for a while resting her head on his shoulder. After a while Myles gently disengaged. "Unfortunately, we still have some work to do." he said. "Sarah, why don't you take Tyler, just relax for a while. With any luck we won't be too long." Sir Walter and Myles went back out, returned to the where their men were waiting with Ingram. "Is everything satisfactory?" he asked. "Indeed" said Sir Walter. "How many personnel can you carry in each aircraft?" "Fifteen or so" replied Ingram. "You'll need to make two trips then, or you can dispatch two more just before you leave, whatever works best for you. I'll have my men release the first thirty, and you can get underway with them." Sir Walter motioned for Jerry to accompany him, walked some distance away. Myles remained where he was, but had an idea what he was up to. Jerry left and went back to the headquarters, and Myles walked over to Sir Walter. "We're sending our spy with the prisoners?" he asked. Sir Walter nodded. "Best way to get rid of her. They may not welcome her, though. The bad information we gave her ensured the raid would be a disaster. Still, we'll at least be rid of her." Before long the first group of prisoners arrived, escorted by a full squad of men. Jerry halted them just outside the landing zone. "They're bringing her now" he told Sir Walter. Indeed, it was just a few minutes before Marlene Knox appeared, escorted by four men. She didn't appear surprised, just dejected but with anger simmering just beneath the surface. As she passed Myles and Sir Walter, she stopped as if to speak. "Don't bother," Sir Walter said. "You can't possibly be surprised. Now go with your people." The escort had stopped, leaving her at the edge of the landing zone. She looked at the waiting helicopters, then back at Sir Walter. Myles saw the intent flare in her eyes - too far away for him to reach her, he threw himself toward Sir Walter. Too late, as she had already fired two shots from the small pistol she had drawn from under her jacket. Myles felt the burning sensation as the third bullet grazed a rib, and the hammer blow of the fourth, higher on his chest. He had drawn his own weapon, falling to one knee, as she turned and ran into the landing zone. She was a good thirty yards away before he was able to squeeze off a round. It hit her dead center, high between the shoulders. She threw up both arms, sending the little pistol flying into the air, and fell forward. "Jerry, Alan" he shouted. "Take over." No details were needed. They quickly had the men, now three full squads, secure the area before turning to check on Myles and Sir Walter. Sir Walter was down, but trying to rise. "Wait, Sir," said Jerry. "Let me see where you're hit." Sir Walter smiled wryly. "I'm too good at telling other people what to do, can't follow my own instructions." He lay quietly while Jerry located the two wounds, low in the abdomen. Myles thought, as he began to feel dizzy, that they might not be too serious. Unless there was too much bleeding, like me. He felt one of Alan's hands on his chest, the other behind him, laying him down on the ground. He could taste blood in his mouth, felt it running down his face now. "Hold still, Myles" said Alan. "Ambulance is on the way. Just hang on, brother. Hang on." Myles thought he heard panic and desperation in his voice, but was beginning to lose his ability to focus. He heard a vehicle rolling up, identifying it by the big diesel engine. There was no need to lights and sirens on the improvised ambulance. Then he was being lifted on to a stretcher, into the back of the van. They closed the doors and it began to roll. Strangely, he didn't feel a lot of pain. He thought of the old joke, how everything looked darkest just before it went completely black. And then it did.