Free The Last Revolution by R.T. Carpenter Page B

broken.
    Reaching out, he grabbed a stick and put it in his mouth. He took hold of his leg, gave it a quick twist and snapped the broken bone back into place. He screamed through gritted teeth, the pain was nauseating. He put a hand out to stabilize himself. Alden spit the stick out and leaned back to catch his breath. The carbon fiber wrapped around his tibia would have activated during the fracture, and now that it was back in place it would seal up tight as concrete.
    He remembered how smooth the sheets had felt in his hospital bed. How he sank into the pillows and listened to Father McKinley assure him the surgery had been for the best—something called Transcendence. It was all so confusing. He knew that science was sinful, everyone on the Island did. Yet the Council had used it to modify his body, to make him something more than he was. He wouldn’t learn about the nano-carbon until much later, but the improvements to his senses—sight and sound—had been overwhelming at first. It had been compounded by the fact that he was now immoral, unclean.
    Ultimately Father McKinley was right, as usual. The enhancements had allowed him to become the best possible soldier. The modification to his eyes had permanently changed the pigment, turning them a vibrant blue color. At times it almost appeared as if they glowed. When he’d returned to the Island the students had mocked him mercilessly for the disaster of the Siberian mission and the wicked technology within his body. Ultimately they were all subjected to the same process; after that they just harassed him about Siberia.
    Suddenly a tree branch cracked in the distance. Alden froze and held his breath. Stop. Look. Listen. Years of training returned like a reflex. Where are you? Where do you need to be? How can you get there? The sun was out and streaks of light cut through the tree branches and illuminated the ground. Patches of snow dotted the forest floor.
    His leg looked fine visually but it would need to sit for a few hours before it would be ready to hold his weight. The more time he could give the nano-carbon molecules to fuse the broken ends of the bone together, the better. But when it was ready to hold his weight where would he go? The Island was no longer an option. Council headquarters were a possibility but if Vasentus was dead then it would be just as dangerous as the Island. Punishment would be swift and absolute if things didn’t go well.
    Alden’s wrist deck blinked. He looked down at the device with a quizzical look and remembered General Sokolov’s words, “It’ll be linked up with headquarters…” If they were reaching out to him, did that mean they knew he was innocent? With some difficulty Alden lifted his supporting hand off the ground and pressed the button. It simply read, are you alive?
    Well, no worse for the wear. Alden thought for a moment but decided it was impossible to make an informed decision without more information. Pressing on the holographic keys he responded, please identify.
    After a few moments the deck lit up again, no. dangerous. council compromised.
    Alden let out a sigh and settled back against the frozen tree trunk. They were compromised. How high up had the treachery gone? Too many questions, not enough answers. Before Alden had the chance to formulate a response another message arrived, I am a friend. 27 Island casualties. Fusion reactor stolen.
    Alden could feel the pit in his stomach returning. The yield wasn’t large enough to destroy a major city, but it could still put a sizeable crater in the earth. If done at the wrong place and time it could be the final straw between the Three Nations. He’d spent his entire life getting lectured about the dangers of all-out war. It would be the last war of mankind.
    After tapping at the holographic keys, Alden hit the send button: extremely dangerous. Must be returned. Twenty-seven dead, betrayed, murdered. It was more than he could handle, he was so tired, needed to rest