Chương 20: Break Through

The alarm's harsh tone filled Director Matthew's office as the trio of screens flashed red. The far left screen changed as the director walked to his desk and hit a few keys on his keyboard. Data scrolled from top to bottom and Jonathan could barely make any sense of it, the code far beyond his understanding. Deputy Director Sullivan stepped forward, getting within a few feet of the central monitor before speaking up.

"Downtown," he said.

"7th and Madison." The screen on the far right changed to a local news station with live video coverage. The camera was already on as the man holding it jumped out of the back of a van and moved quickly through the street full of stopped cars. There were several rear-end collisions, and there was chaos as people ran in different directions, all heading away from the blue floating portal.

"I'm mobilizing a response team," Sullivan said with his tablet already in hand.

"We'll follow the proper containment protocols and get this-""That'll take too long," Jonathan said firmly.

"That's only a few miles from here, isn't it?" He nodded toward the central screen, which still showed a graphic of the city map.

"Oh, no-""You'd close it for us?" Director Matthews gave his Deputy Director a sharp look.

"Not for you. For them. They need the help." Jonathan pointed back to the right screen, where people were fleeing the space around the portal. Some people had stopped and were trying to get videos or pictures on their phones, though they were hiding behind cars.

"Absolutely not." Sullivan's knuckles turned white as he gripped the back of an office chair with his free hand.

"You have already done eno-" Matthews slammed his hand on the conference desk in the center of the room.

"People could die while we debate this." He looked at his counterpart and said, "You wanted PR? Go handle it. News crews are already there. Mr. Reeves has closed more Rifts than any team that we have at our immediate disposal. If he thinks he can do it again, you should be doing everything you can to make a good impression." He raised his voice and shouted to the wall, "Agent Carter."

As soon as Elijah entered the room, the Director instructed him to take Jonathan to the armory and get whatever was needed to handle the emergency. They moved quickly and the Deputy Director's protests could be heard before they were even fully out of the room. Despite looking nervous, Elijah led them through the building and back to the elevator. They went to a basement level that opened up to reveal a warehouse style floor with high ceilings and support beams evenly spaced.

They moved through the space where others were moving frantically and preparing themselves for the same Rift appearance.

"We can't all go at once. I can't control what I'm fighting when I enter {Rage}. This many people in the Rift at once will likely just get in the way."

"I'll send a message to the Director. He'll have to make the decision." Elijah answered as they arrived at a thick wall of alternating wire grating and thick plexiglass. I guess preparations need to be a bit drastic when I could punch through- He stopped as his Axe and shoulder sling were passed through a small window at Elijah's request. It was a bit of a terrifying thought to realize that he didn't have any idea how strong he really was.

With his Strength skyrocketing during his {Rage} state, he had no idea how much damage he could really do. Deciding that he would need to test it out, he grabbed the axe when offered and told Elijah that he didn't need more armor, just another layer, and to bring something for after the Rift. To his surprise, he was also supplied with a small glass bottle that housed red liquid.

"What's this," he asked. As he held the bottle up to the fluorescent lights, the liquid moved around like cough syrup.

"One of our newer recruits was a chemist before Awakening. They have a trait and skill that let them brew potions, this will help increase your vitality for a time after drinking it."

"Holy shit." Jonathan said with a laugh, "Is this a health potion?" Elijah waved his hand.

"Nothing so dramatic. It will give you a buff recognized by the System, but it's nothing that will heal major wounds. Though, the hope is that when he chooses a class through the System, he will get the option of an Alchemist."

"What a weird conversation," shaking his head, Jonathan handed the bottle back to the young agent.

"I've got nowhere to keep this. Every bag I take gets ruined or lost while blacking out. It would probably break if I tried to keep it on my person, and if I left it somewhere, there's no telling if I could get back to it if I come out of the {Rage} while hurt." Elijah started to speak, then closed his mouth.

"Unless you want to come in with me?" Jonathan teased.

"I think not. But it might be a good idea to have someone tail you from a distance. We don't have any healers at this branch, but there are a few people with long-range capabilities from being expert marksmen in the military before the integration." Find this and other great novels on the author's preferred platform. Support original creators! Once prepared, they moved to the elevator and went down another floor, rather than up.

The entire basement level acted as a parking deck with various kinds of vehicles lined up. They paused and Elijah sent a message to his boss.

"No healers, really? Wouldn't that just come from a doctor or nurse awakening or something?" Elijah nodded absently as he tapped away on the tablet.

"Yes, that's the theory. We've offered high rewards for that part of the incentive program, though the System seems to offer traits more based on personality or how the fight goes to Awaken. It's been hard to get someone to awaken with a decent trait that might assist in that. It's also a bit more challenging to get a noncombat class to level up, so we haven't had one of the volunteers reach level ten to see what classes they're offered. But, we're close."

Jonathan nodded, remembering his own class selection options.

"Feel like that would be pretty valuable."

"It's a top priority, for sure. This way." Elijah walked toward a vehicle and jumped in the driver's seat. He grabbed the keys from the console and plugged his cell phone in while pulling up directions. Jonathan put his axe in the back and got into the passenger seat. Without wasting any more time, they pulled onto the ramp and out into the afternoon DC traffic.

"How much danger are the civilians in? Are monsters going to start coming out? I've only fought them inside of the Rift so far."

"No, there's almost no risk of a Rift Break this soon after it's appeared. Breaks only happen when nothing's been killed inside for a while. That's where the Cull quests come from. The System seems to want us to prevent the breaks, or the breaks are a punishment for not diving into the Rifts more quickly." He took a sharp left and looked at the vehicle's GPS display.

"Right now, we're more worried about civilians getting too close or trying to enter unprepared. That could be extremely dangerous without getting there and at least scanning the Rank of the Rift." Sirens wailed ahead of them as they approached the intersection. Police cruisers formed a makeshift barrier, though officers struggled to control the crowd. Before they'd left the headquarters building, the feed that they had seen from the news camera showed almost everyone fleeing the Rift.

But now, after just a bit of time had passed, Jonathan could clearly see people trying to get past law enforcement and to the blue portal. Elijah barely had time to park before Jonathan was out of the SUV and grabbing his greataxe from the back of the vehicle. Scanning the area, he used both hands to adjust the weight of the axe and let it settle into the hardened grooves of the sheath on his back.

He noted a few different areas that could make for easy traffic and escape routes, and looked past the police vehicles to see a large number of parked and abandoned vehicles. Some had people standing next to or even on their car to get a better look at the tear in space. Elijah was already moving and had his badge out, and Jonathan could appreciate the agent's sense of competence and professionalism in a situation like this. They walked to the barricade and were stopped by an officer.

Elijah quickly intercepted the man and flashed credentials while explaining who they were. Jonathan loomed behind the smaller agent, and he could see the relief on the officers face when he explained that they were Awakened from the Hunters Association and were there to close the Rift.

"That's great. Please, come in."

"Keep your men here, Sergeant. We need to keep the street as clear as possible and prevent people from entering and taking any unnecessary risks."

"Will do."

"Dad!" The voice cut through the chaos around them, and Jonathan turned to see David pushing his way through the crowd. An officer moved to stop him, but Jonathan called out.

"Wait, let him over here." David looked exhausted. It looked to Jonathan like his son hadn't slept in a long while. His hand trembled slightly as he approached and pulled something from his jacket. A crumpled piece of paper. Jonathan's breath caught as he recognized his own handwriting.

"Found this when I went home," David said quietly.

"I saw you in the news and tried calling, but didn't get an answer. I flew home and you weren't there, then I saw this…"

"My phone's been broken. I tried to call on another phone. But, David, I-""Were you really going to just…" David's voice cracked. He gestured at the Rift.

"Is that why you keep rushing into these things?" The noises of the crowd and sirens faded away, and Jonathan saw fear in his son's eyes. It was the same fear he'd seen from him when Emma was sick.

"I thought…" Jonathan started, then stopped himself. The practiced excuses felt hollow, and he'd been making progress in his own feelings in the last several days.

"I didn't think…" The words fell away, and he didn't know how to express his feelings.

"You're all I have left," David said. His voice was stronger as anger mixing with the fear.

"And you were just going to…" He clenched the note tighter in his hand. The Rift pulsed in the distance, and Elijah took a half step toward the pair before moving away to talk with the nearby officers.

"I'm sorry," he said and knew that the words were inadequate.

"I've been… lost." He looked at his son- really looked at him. Not the kid who'd rejected the military but the man who'd chosen his own way despite the pressures he'd faced. The man who'd chosen to be there, to close the gap between them.

"I've been lost for a while now, son." They stood in silence for several moments, staring at each other. Neither of them was quite sure what to say. Elijah called from a short distance away, shaking them from the intense moment of feelings. David nodded and rushed to his father to give him a hug.

"Just- promise me you'll come back out." Jonathan gripped David's shoulders as they separated. He looked down at his son and felt tears sting his eyes as he nodded, "I'll come back." He turned toward the Rift, "Elijah, this is my son. Watch out for him while I'm in there, would you?" Elijah nodded, and his sense of professional urgency softened as he gave David a smile. Jonathan stepped off toward the Rift and as he passed by Elijah, the younger man gave him final parting words.

He scanned the Rift and told him that it was a Common E Rank Rift and that they would be sending in two men to follow after Jonathan to collect Mana Stones and bring him a potion if needed. The berserker rested a hand on Elijah's shoulder.

"Thank you, Elijah. Look after my son. I'll be back in a bit, and we can talk about a future where I can help the Hunters Association." He could feel the familiar pull of rage simmering at the base of his stomach. But, for the first time since Marcus had died, something else burned there next to the rage. The Hunters Association could give him structure and resources- a way to fight without losing himself. He'd seen the wall of photos and personally felt the weight of that loss.

He felt that his experience and specific skills could help prevent more faces from being added to that collection. More than that, his son needed him. I can do both. I just need to start controlling this rage. Jonathan walked forward toward the Rift and unslung his greataxe just before the now-familiar sensation of weightlessness took over his body.