When Rebecca was a girl, one of her neighbour’s homes had caught fire. It had raged for the entire night, starting small before consuming the house in an utter inferno. She could still remember the faces of her neighbours as they watched their world come to an end.
It was an expression that Ashley wore. A hollow and vacant numbness. A thousand-yard stare that she had no hope of breaking.
Yet, her wife continued to lead the car onwards, heading straight for the smoldering pillars of smoke in the distance.
They were heading into the heart of Tartarus, into the hellish domain of Hades.
“What happened?” Ashley whispered.
It was not a question meant for Rebecca so she didn’t respond. Instead, she looked down at her phone, seeing that they were still outside of the communication network.
If there even was a communication network anymore.
The road leading towards the city was barren with no one in their right mind following their lead.
The opposite direction was a different story. A few hours ago, there was the occasional car or truck. An hour ago, it was practically a convoy. Now there was gridlock as people blared their horns, trying to escape the carnage.
“Where are they going to go?” Rebecca asked.
Ashley shook her head. “Who knows? I’m sure some of the satellite cities can take in some of the refugees but… a whole city’s worth?”
“Surely, the colonial administration planned for this,” Rebecca said. “They have to have some sort of strategy in place if Athens were to be destroyed.” She motioned towards the sky. “I mean, fuck, we’ve been at war for generations.”
Ashley didn’t respond and instead kept her eyes on the road.
Even from within the vehicle, Rebecca knew that the world around them was growing sickly. She could see the haze in the air. It was a slight tinge of orange that seemed to cling to everything.
What were they honestly doing, heading into the epicentre of this miasma?
“What are we doing?” Rebecca asked.
Ashley spared her the smallest of glances. “Heading back into the city and seeing if we can help.”
“How can we possibly help?” Rebecca asked, frowning. “We’re just two women.”
“We’re members of the Sacred Band, Rebecca,” Ashley growled. Her grip tightened on the wheel. “It’s our duty to make sure that people are safe.”
Rebecca didn’t know what to say. Though thankfully her phone saved her from having to figure something out. It buzzed and the screen brightened, showing that she’d just got a text from her mother.
“Please tell me you’re safe!”
It was from three hours ago.
Rebecca winced and quickly unlocked it, sliding her finger across the screen to draft a response and send it. She then immediately went over to her phone’s news app.
Hostile Forces Strike at Thebes!
Rebecca felt a pit in her stomach. She couldn’t bear to read it, instead slipping her phone back into her jacket’s pocket.
“What happened?” Ashley asked.
Rebecca swallowed down her anxiety. “We were attacked.”
“Attacked,” Ashley whispered. She shook her head. “That’s impossible, the… the Themiskyra should’ve intercepted whatever did this. Or fuck, one of those defense platforms near Thermopylae.” Her expression darkened. “No way, not in a million years.”
Rebecca forced the phone out of her pocket, flipping the app back open.
“At fourteen hundred hours,” she began to read. “The Anatolians managed to slip through the Thermopylae warp gate, using a large attack craft of incredible speed. While the craft took extensive damage, it managed to outrun the defense platforms and head on a crash course for Thebes, landing in a suburb south of Athens. Captain Constantine and General Valentine have not responded to comments as to how these unfortunate events were allowed to unfold.” She swallowed a lump in her throat. “Casualties are currently estimated at somewhere between…”
Ashley growled. “I get it.”
Rebecca winced, placing her phone back in her lap.
Something off to the side of the road caught her attention. It was a farm with a series of tents pitched in the middle of a grazing field. The tents were white with red crosses on the side. A helicopter had landed amongst them with a few figures dressed in olive drab unloading it.
“Pull in,” Rebecca said, pointing to the turn up ahead.
Ashley shook her head. “Why?”
She then followed Rebecca’s hand, noticing the operation. So, she turned the car and they started along the short dirt path.
They came to a stop in front of the farmhouse. A steel faced officer was currently chatting with a pair of women who had clearly been enjoying retirement before this went down.
When the car shut off, they turned and looked at Ashley and Rebecca.
Ashley got out quickly and slammed her door shut, waving to the people on the patio.
“We were on our way back to the city,” she explained. “And couldn’t help but notice that you had something going on here.”
One the elderly women nodded. “The Civil Guard needed a place to put up some medical tents.”
Rebecca frowned. “There must be enough space for at least five hundred people in there.”
“More than that,” the officer said. “And it’s already filled up to capacity. Along with every other fucking site we’ve set up around the city.” He worked his jaw. “Is there anything I can help you with?”
“Just wanted to know how we can help out, Sir?” Ashley said.
“You got any medical experience?” he asked.
Ashley bit her lip. “Just the basic first aid training they give all the new recruits back in the Academy.”
“Enough to set a splint and stop bleeding?” he asked.
Ashley nodded.
“And what about you?” he asked, looking at Rebecca who had just gotten out of the car. “First aid?”
“Yes,” she said. “But I also have a certificate in light machinery maintenance.”
He nodded. “You can probably help set up the generators we just got shipped in.” He huffed. “Most of our gear is in desperate need of a little maintenance.”
He waved them over and then glanced at the two retirees. “Sorry to cut things short but…”
The other older woman shook her head. “Wouldn’t dream of taking any more of your time, Captain.”
“May the gods grant you their boons,” he said, bowing his head before making his way down the stairs. “Follow me, I’ll show you where everything is.”
He marched forwards with Ashley and Rebecca falling in behind him.
“How are things in the city?” Ashley asked.
The officer shook his head. “No idea. All the information we’re getting is incredibly spotty. One person will tell us that everything is fucked and the next will say that the only heavy damage is in the suburbs. Don’t know what to believe at this point.”
Rebecca frowned. “Were you not stationed in the city?”
“No, our outfit is from Fort Corfu. We started setting up medical centres around the city when we heard news about that shuttle crashing.” He frowned. “This is actually my first time even being close to the city.” He snorted. “Wish it was under better circumstances.”
He motioned towards a small tent set up in the middle of the larger tents.
“That’s where our medical team is set up,” he said. “So far we only have two doctors and six medics, so I’m sure they’ll be happy to get whatever help they can.” He frowned. “Though I really hope that you don’t have a weak stomach.”
“Never tested it before,” Ashley admitted. She looked apprehensive but shoved these thoughts aside, offering an unsteady smile. “But I’m sure I can handle it.”
“That’s good to hear,” the officer said.
He then motioned for Rebecca to follow him, which she did, moving around one of the tents.
As they neared it, Rebecca could hear all sorts of horrifying and gristly sounds. There was weeping, sobbing, agony, and pain. There were gurgles and whimpers that sounded sickly and unnatural, the death throes of a community’s worth of people.
And while the sounds were bad, the smells were so much worse. They leaked out from under the flaps of the tent, wafting sickness, filth, and antiseptic outwards in every possible direction.
It was enough to make Rebecca go green. And as she looked at the officer, she noticed that he suffered from a similar affliction.
They turned a corner and there was a team of three Civil Guard setting up some kind of electrical system.
The officer loudly cleared his throat and they all stopped and looked at him. Though their gaze soon fell to Rebecca.
“Folks this is…” the officer frowned. “Actually, I never did get your names.”
“I’m Rebecca,” she said, offering a polite smile. “Rebecca Agincourt-Reed.”
The officer nodded. “I’m Elliot and this is…”
A woman with green hair and olive skin bowed. “Caroline.”
“Trevor,” a darker man with his hair shaved short said, offering a half-hearted salute.
The last woman, a blonde with cold green eyes and red hair, looked at her. “Angie.”
“Rebecca here has a certificate in…” Elliot worked his jaw, obviously forgetting the detail.
Rebecca smiled. “Light machinery maintenance, repair, and manufacturing.”
Elliot nodded. “Thought she might be able to help you with getting our generators in working order.”
Trevor chuckled and motioned to one of these generators. “We’ll take all the help we can get, Sir.”
Rebecca followed him, watching as he took a knee beside it. He flipped open a panel on the side and showed off a whole lot of wiring and internal components.
“So fun fact,” he said. “But the colonial administration has been incredibly sparse with their disaster relief budget over the last couple of decades. What that means for us is that most of our equipment is decades old and has gone years without a proper inspection.”
Angie snorted. “I mean why invest money in practical stuff when we can burn a fuckton on useless military bullshit like the Sacred Bands.”
“Angie,” Caroline interjected. “This isn’t the time for…”
“We’ve been working nonstop since we got here, Caroline,” Angie grumbled. “The least you can let me do is blow off a little steam.”
Caroline looked at Trevor who simply shrugged his shoulders.
“Whatever,” she murmured.
Instead of sticking around, she went away to work on something far away from Angie.
Angie nodded. “I mean think about it. Whatever they can do, can easily be handled by those MAC guns on the Thermopylae stations. All they do is suck up precious resources for some Warhawk’s wet dream that we’ll one day take the fight back to the Anatolians.” She scoffed. “Like that’ll ever happen in any of our lifetimes.”
“That might be true,” Trevor said. “But the last I checked those stations didn’t stop that ship either. The entire defense force shit the bucket, not just the Themiskyra.”
“Yeah, but we could’ve easily manned three more stations with the assets we’re wasting on that old tin can,” Angie rebutted. “Do you know how much that tech costs to upkeep? It's literally centuries old.”
Rebecca held her tongue and instead knelt beside the generator.
People were angry and they had every right to be. Still, it made her blood boil, hearing these glorified weekend warriors taking a crap on her mothers’ legacy.
Work would provide solace, it always had.
She glanced at Trevor. “Do you have a tool kit somewhere?”
He nodded and reached for his belt, pulling off a small plastic box and handing it to her.
“You can probably put it to better use than me,” he said, frowning. “I’m used to fixing radios and doing IT work. This stuff is pretty much Latin to me.”
Rebecca placed the kit atop the generator, flipping it open and grabbing a multitool. With it in hand, she flicked the generator’s power button, staring intently at the various components. Nothing seemed to happen. Most of the internals operated as they should. All but one of them.
She flicked the generator off and started to get to work with the multitool.
The tech was archaic but still it was something she was vaguely familiar with. She managed to loosen a copper diode, drawing it out and inspecting it. The material was tarnished and caked in a mixture of a nasty green and black gunk.
“Do you have spare parts?” Rebecca asked.
Trevor took the piece from her. “I think so?”
He squinted at the diode before nodding and heading over to a workbench. A moment later, he returned with another copper diode. This one looked far more modern, and more importantly, gunk free.
“We need to hurry and get this shit online,” Angie whispered. “They’re going to have the serious medical equipment here in a few. And they’ll be pissed if we don’t have at least some sort of working power system.”
Rebecca nodded and reached inside the generator, slipping the newer diode into place. She tightened it and closed the lid, giving it a hefty slap for good measure. She then pressed the power button once again.
The machine turned over and revved up slowly. She held her breath, praying that it would work. Then it caught, sputtering to life.
“Nice one, kid,” Trevor said. “Should be enough to power at least one of these tents.”
Rebecca beamed at the compliment. Though before she could respond, her phone started to ring. She reached for it and saw that it was a call from one of her mothers.
“Mom?” she answered, holding it to her ear.
“Oh, by the gods, thank fuck you’re alright,” Theodora said. The tears were evident in her voice. “Where have you been?”
“Sorry mom, the… the… it took down the communication network,” Rebecca said.
Theodora drew in a shaky breath. “Are you somewhere safe?”
“We are.” Rebecca looked at Trevor who simply nodded, allowing her to slip away. “We’re at some farm near the city. They’ve set up a hospital here and…”
“Are you hurt!” Theodora yelped. “Please tell me…”
Rebecca shushed her. “Shh, shh, shh, it’s okay mom. We’re fine, we’re just trying to help out in whatever way we can. How are… how are things with you? Is everyone…”
“We’re fine,” Theodora said. “Thankfully, Ashley’s parents live on the north side of the city. Only thing we have to worry about here is the air pollution and a lack of power.”
“Has there been any word from…” Rebecca started. She glanced to make sure Angie wasn’t looking. “From the Bands?”
“If so, the message hasn’t got through to us yet,” Theodora said. “Fucking hell, this is such a mess, sweetie.”
“I know, mom, I know.” Rebecca sighed. “I’m just glad that everyone is okay.”
“Thank the gods you weren’t in your apartment,” her mother said.
Rebecca was about to ask why but then it hit her like a truck full of bricks. Her apartment building would’ve been on the edge of that massive crater.
What were the chances that her roommates were still alive?
She drew in a breath, letting it out slowly. “Me too, mom. Just… if you hear anything, give me a shout, okay?”
“Will do, sweetie,” Theodora whispered. “I’m just so thankful that you’re alright.”
“I need… I need to get back to work,” Rebecca said. “We’re trying to get some generators up and running.”
“Can you send me your coordinates?”
Rebecca nodded. “I’ll do it right after this call, mom.”
“I love you, ‘Beca.”
“I love you too, mom.”
The call came to an end and she quickly sent over her coordinates before opening her texting app. It’d been about a week since she’d last heard from her roommates.
She sent off a quick text and waited a moment.
Failed to Send, Number has Either Been Disconnected or is Out of the Service Area.
Rebecca bit her lip. “There’s still a chance, right?”
“Always a chance,” a familiar gruff voice replied.
She looked over her shoulder and saw Trevor standing there. He looked grim.
“Sorry,” Rebecca said. “Just got a call from my mom, she wanted to make sure…”
“That you’re alright?” he asked, offering a slim smile. “Surprised that the network is even back up.”
“I think it’s pretty spotty,” Rebecca explained. “I’m still trying to get through to my roommates. They were…” She bit her lip. “Pretty close to the epicentre.”
Trevor nodded and looked quite dark. Before he could reply however, he turned towards the workstation, making his way over to it.
“For their sake, I hope that the network is just being spotty,” he said.
Rebecca started to follow him back. “Me too.”
As they approached, Caroline came out from under the flap of the nearest medical tent with a thick power cable in hand. She was pale and a little green.
“Fuck,” she whispered.
“Are you alright?” Angie asked.
Caroline shook her head slowly. “Dude, please don’t make me go back in there.”
“That bad?” Angie whispered.
Caroline nodded quickly, holding out the cable to whoever was willing to take it.
Angie looked like she was about to but flinched away at the last second.
Trevor sighed and grabbed it from her. “I’ll handle this.”
Hours went by with scarcely enough time for Rebecca to even catch her breath. The generators took most of the day, as it was, but when they were done, there was all sorts of archaic equipment that needed her attention.
It wasn’t until the sun started to set that Rebecca was allowed a moment to herself.
She looked down at her fingers. Every single nail was chipped or broken, her fingers were covered in grease, and an alarming number of Band-Aids covered her hands. There wasn’t a single muscle in her body which didn’t protest against the idea of getting back up.
“You did good,” Angie said.
Rebecca stirred, watching as she approached. She held two bottles of water and offered one to Rebecca.
Rebecca drank hers like a woman in the dessert, greedily chugging the contents until the whole thing was drained.
“Thanks,” she rasped.
Angie smirked. “No problem.” She looked off into the distance. “It’s the least I could do.”
“Feels like we did a good day’s work,” Rebecca said.
Angie shook her head. “Nah. A good day’s work doesn’t leave you nearly this exhausted. This is a very bad day’s work. But it’s work that needed doing.” She offered a tight smile. “Don’t know where we would’ve been without you.”
“Glad I could help,” Rebecca whispered.
Angie nodded. “Your wife is taking a break near the medical tents if you want to see her.”
“Thanks for letting me know,” Rebecca said.
She got up slowly, wincing as she felt the fatigue of her body fighting back against her. Still, she managed to get up and started lurching around the medical tents. It was a short journey but one that felt like a marathon to her battered and well used body.
She made it to the front and saw that Ashley was leaning back against one of the many crates. Her eyes were closed and there was a glowing stick between her fingers.
Rebecca grunted and made her way over. “I didn’t know you smoked.”
Ashley stirred, opening her eyes. Though she smiled upon seeing her wife. Still, it was a tired smile; a well-worn expression of fatigue.
“I don’t,” she said. “But one of the doctors said it would help settle my nerves.”
“A doctor recommended that you smoke?” Rebecca asked.
She slumped down beside her wife, draping an arm over her shoulder. That’s when she noticed that Ashley was shaking. The tremors were sporadic but very pronounced.
“Anything to get me through the day,” Ashley whispered. “But all it's really doing is making me shake even worse.” She growled and flicked the stick away. “Stupid fucking nicotine.”
Rebecca looked down at Ashley, noticing that she was covered in dried blood. Her shirt, pants, and even her skin were marked by a tinge of red. It was enough to make her stomach roll though she tried her best to distract herself by looking at Ashley’s face, the one part not caked in gore.
“It’s fucked, babe,” Ashley whispered. “I keep pushing myself but people keep fucking dying.” She shuddered, tears pricking at her eyes. “There was this… this…”
She sobbed, wiping at her face with the back of her hand. Though this only managed to smudge her cheek with red.
“Sorry,” she whispered. “I really shouldn’t bug you with…”
“Babe,” Rebecca said, kissing her on the unbloodied part of her cheek. “You can bug me with whatever. We’re married.”
Ashley drew in a breath and nodded slowly. “There was this woman who was in really rough shape. Probably only a year or two older than us. Had three kids. She was hanging on but the kids… the kids not so much.” She swallowed down some of her misery. “The oldest went first and you could see just a little bit of her die. But she held on because she still had two left.”
Rebecca listened, cradling Ashley tightly against her.
“Then the middle kid went an hour later,” Ashley said. At this point there was no hope of combating the solid stream of tears. “And then the youngest a little after that. And well…” Ashley let out a string of dark and coarse laughter. “And of course, the mother went soon after. I spent hours with them.”
“Fuck,” Rebecca whispered. “I’m… I’m so sorry, Ash.”
Ashley shook her head. “And that was just one family in one tent in one medical centre.” Her hands started shaking again so Rebecca grabbed them and held on tight. “And I’m next to fucking useless. I can do stitches and apply burn cream. But you have these fuckers who are half dead and they expect someone with a first aid certificate to know what to do.”
“You’re doing the best you can,” Rebecca whispered.
Ashley growled. “Yeah, well my best isn’t fucking good enough, ‘Beca.”
There was pure rage in her eyes as she looked at Rebecca. Though upon seeing the shock plastered on her wife’s face it soon shifted to horror, then shame.
“Sorry,” Ashley whispered. “You…” She hiccupped, “you didn’t deserve that.”
“It’s been a long day,” Rebecca said, gently running her thumb over Ashley’s knuckles.
Ashley nodded sadly. “It has.”
“Mom phoned me, by the way,” Rebecca said, trying to change the subject.
Ashley paused for a moment, then it clicked. “Fuck, I didn’t even think about checking in on them.”
“You were busy,” Rebecca said, squeezing her quivering hands even tighter. “But they’re doing okay. There’s only a little bit of damage at your parent’s place.”
“That’s good,” Ashley said. She shuddered and looked at the tents. “I should… I should probably get back to work.”
Rebecca shook her head. “You need a little more time, babe. You’re not going to do any good shaking like this.” She bit her lip. “When’s the last time you’ve had anything to eat?”
“This morning,” Ashley said. “That granola bar for breakfast.”
“Same,” Rebecca said. She looked to the farmhouse. “Maybe we can see if they have anything to eat?”
As if to prove her assumption correct, she saw Trevor exit the farmhouse with a tray of food in his hands. He saw the duo and beamed, making his way over.
“Your hands are filthy,” Ashley said.
Rebecca looked towards them. “So are yours.”
“Glad I could find you two,” Trevor said. He knelt before them, holding out the tray. “Thankfully our hosts were nice enough to make us some food.”
Rebecca took the tray. Upon it were two bowls that were full of some kind of soup. There were also two glasses that contained an orange beverage.
“Ashley, this is Trevor, I’ve been working with him all day,” Rebecca explained.
“Pleasured,” Ashley said, trying to sound even remotely enthusiastic but falling flat.
“Likewise,” he said as he bowed his head. “But I’ll let you two have a little bit of privacy.”
With that, he went off, leaving them alone.
“Food smells good,” Rebecca said.
Ashley nodded slowly. Though as she reached for the spoon, her hand was still shaking too badly to actually handle it. Instead, she picked up the bowl with both hands. A little of the contents spilled out, on the journey to her mouth, but she drank from it with surprising greed. She only placed it back down when there was only a thin ration left on the bottom.
“It’s good,” she whispered.
Rebecca tried it herself. It was some kind of seafood soup with plenty of vegetables in it; a hearty stew. She then tried the beverage. It was warm and tangy, though it tasted finer than the nectars of Olympus to her still parched tongue.
“Not quite the honeymoon I had planned,” Ashley said, chuckling to herself.
Rebecca shook her head. “Nope, didn’t quite plan for this either.”
“Is there…” Ashley shivered. “Is there any news from the Bands?”
Rebecca flipped out her phone. “Not that I can tell. I think everyone is still in shock. They have more important things to worry about than a couple of new recruits.”
When Ashley picked up the bowl again, her hands were not shaking nearly as bad, allowing her to finish the rest of its contents.
“Fuck, I was starving,” she said.
Rebecca nodded, slowly savouring her own meal.
“Though fuck it if I know how all those injured people are going to get fed,” Ashley said. “We were supposed to get like twenty more doctors and forty nurses in at some point today. And we’ve got maybe another one or two and that’s just from people who trickled in while evacuating.”
“Things are fucked,” Rebecca said.
Ashley sighed. “Yeah, they are.”
Rebecca bit her lip, looking towards the tents. A doctor came out of one of them, looking just as tired as she felt. He drew forth a packet from his breast pocket and pulled out a cigarette, placing it between his lips.
“Are you going to be okay?” she asked.
“I’ll be honest.” Ashley shook her head. “I have no fucking idea.”
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