Fourth Vector Ch. 50

It couldn't last forever though. It was a battle of the mind--a reminder that life still existed to give strength to the memory that pulled him out of it.

And it caused Jack's eyes to pop open as awareness hit him with full force.

Like a wild animal, he bolted upright as his instincts primed, ready for fight or flight depending on what the situation called for. To his surprise, he found himself on dry land. There were people about him but no one looking directly at him or near enough to his position to have heard his sudden awakening.

Well, almost no one.

"Jack, get back down!"

The voice hissed through the early morning air, but it was one that was familiar to Jack. His head still rang with confusion as he tried to place it. Whose voice did it belong to?

It wasn't long before he swiveled his head and found the identity of the owner.

It was Lt. Cory Renner.

Jack's eyes squinted at Cory who was now rapidly closing the distance between them.

"Cory? Where are we?"

"Lay back down!" hissed Cory, stopping his body a short distance from Jack's. He pivoted so that he was no longer facing Jack but away from him. Yet, the distance between them was enough that they could talk privately.

However, to any outsiders, it would look like there was nothing going on.

Jack laid back down and turned his head toward Cory.

"No, put your head back the way it was," whispered Cory. "Pretend that you're still dead. We're in danger."

That was enough reason for Jack to go back to playing possum. He did his best to resume his previous position, even closing his eyes before reaching back out to Cory.

"Where are we?"

"In a small fishing village called Tinhurst," replied Cory. "Just south of Mobust. We've been recovered by Javan fishermen after the battle with Reynolds."

The battle with Reynolds. Suddenly, Jack remembered the intense heat once again.

"The battle," he whispered. "The Destiny. She's gone, isn't she?"

Cory's voice struggled when he spoke next. "She's gone. Below the waves now."

Jack swallowed the lump in his throat. There would be time to mourn the Destiny later, but for now, he had to know who survived. What about his wives? What about the war?

"There are only a few survivors here with us now," said Cory, no doubt anticipating the question. "A few familiar faces but no other officers from what I can tell."

"Abigail?" asked Jack, only to see Cory shake his head.

"I don't know what happened to her."

The pit in Jack's stomach grew deeper. He felt the sudden urge to vomit.

"You're alive though," said Cory finally. "How are you still alive? They all thought you were dead."

"I'm still figuring that out myself," whispered Jack. "Who is they?"

"These fishermen. There's two here that are in charge but there are others," said Cory before he said something that Jack dreaded even more. "They know who you are, Jack. They recognize you."

Jack gulped. "And what do they plan to do about it?"

Cory didn't mince words. "Turn you over to Bancroft."

"I expected as much," replied Jack. "We're deep within enemy lines without any force. No doubt, they will look to collect on a prize. Any word of the battle on land? Up in Mobust?"

Cory shook his head. "Nothing but the artillery sounds this morning. About an hour before you woke up. It was brief but violent. You can still hear gunfire in the distance."

That was certainly true. Even with the distance, Jack could still make out the faint sounds of weaponry--more than enough evidence of how many troops were engaged in the battle.

"Do we know anything else?" asked Jack. "Did the fleet survive? Was Reynolds defeated?"

"I don't know. The fishermen seem to think it was a draw though. There are claims that Reynolds fled north. Whether that is true, I do not know."

"We need to find a way out of here," said Jack suddenly. "We are so close to Bancroft that if these fishermen wanted to, they could overwhelm us and deposit us right in his lap."

"That's the plan, led by a fisherman named Earl. He was the one to recognize you and he wants to claim the prize of giving you to Bancroft. We're supposed to leave here shortly, before the morning ends."

Jack took a moment to open his eyes and quickly surveil their surroundings but he closed them again. "Any options present themselves for a quick escape?"

Cory nodded. "I was thinking about the fishing boat. If the rumors are true, we don't have to worry about running into Reynolds' ships. We can hug the coast up the shore as long as possible until we reach our own lines. I think it's our only real option. Otherwise, all the land routes could be swarming with Javan soldiers. We'd have to move through their entire army without being detected. Those aren't great odds."

"No, they aren't," agreed Jack. "The fishing boat it is. They are easy to operate and we'll both be familiar with the controls."

Cory tried to control a grin. "I did a lot of fishing with my old man back in the day. I know I can get her running pretty quickly."

"What about a diversion?" asked Jack. "No chance these men are just going to let us stroll out of here with their boat."

"Or without collecting on the prize on your head," said Cory. "But how do we set up a diversion? It will take a minute to get the boat started and there's plenty of fishermen here. I've seen a few with pistols as well. A minute is a long time to get going under that kind of odds."

Jack looked at the boat again, studying it for a moment before he heard Cory shift in his position. He looked back to see that Cory was now standing and looking out into the distance.

"What is it?" asked Jack.

"Something is happening closer to the village," replied Cory. "I'm going to see what's going on. Wait here."

With that, Cory disappeared and walked closer to the village. Jack had the opportunity to look around again, trying to come up with the best plan to steal the boat, but he became distracted when sounds of raised voices and commotion started to come from Tinhurst.

Finally, Cory returned.

"The village is in an uproar," he said, the excitement evident in his voice. "Our army has defeated Bancroft and his force. The Javan Army is retreating now. There are reports of a mass of Javan soldiers moving south and getting closer to Tinhurst, all trying to get away from our forces."

On one hand, Jack couldn't help but be ecstatic by that news. Ambros and Greg had found a way to beat Bancroft, and if his army was truly disintegrating, this war was as good as over.

And yet, it made the challenge of an escape even tougher. They would have to move quickly, or they might come across the remains of the defeated Javans--many of whom might just kill him out of spite due to their loss.

"We have to move now," said Jack. "And we have to do it quickly. The fishermen will be distracted by the news and their attention won't be on the boats. Wait until the coast looks clear and let's move quickly."

"I'm ready when you are," said Cory quietly. "And by the looks of things, we may never get another moment like this one."

"Let's go then," said Jack.

In an instant, the two men leapt to their feet and made a dash for the fishing boat. It was one of several that was moored at the end of a short dock, jutting into the ocean from a small, open clearing. Just about every man in the village was away from the dock, leading to high hopes that they could make their escape before they were noticed.

The only problem was that one man was still emerging from his boat, a man that had been unseen until after they'd started to move. His eyes went wide when he saw Jack and Cory rushing down the dock, and it was only Cory's quick thinking that ran through the man and pushed him into the water.

Getting that small window allowed them to hop into one of the vessels. Jack made for the engine while Cory went about untying it from the dock.

The only problem they faced was that the man who'd been knocked into the water soon stood in the shallow waters and started to bellow at the top of his lungs.

"Escape! These two are escaping!" he yelled in a voice loud enough to echo through the entire village.

Suddenly, all attention that had been focused on the village turned back on Jack and Cory at the docks. The fishermen were no longer distracted and they moved to close the gaps between themselves and the dock, with several of them pulling out small firearms in the process.

"Jack, we have company!" yelled Cory, still in the process of untying the boat.

"We have to move quickly!" said Jack.

The two men continued to get the boat ready to move but Jack had scarcely gotten the engine running before they heard the first sound of gunshots.

"Get down!" yelled Jack to Cory, who quickly hid below the railing as several gunshots peppered his former position.

"Are we loose? Can we get going?" asked Jack.

"I have one more line I need to get," said Cory, a look of desperation on his face.

"Shit!"

By this time, the fishermen had closed the distance and were now rushing onto the dock. Their pistols were trained on the boat, and it was obvious to Jack that the opportunity had been lost.

"Give up now!" yelled one of the fishermen. "You're not getting away with my prize money!"

It was too late to even respond. Jack and Cory were then surrounded by the angry fishermen. Both men put their hands up to save from being shot but it didn't stop the men from roughing them up. Cory took several kicks to the ribs before he was dragged off the boat, groaning in pain.

What Jack took was worse. One of the Javans had managed to get his hands on an army rifle. The Javan took the NT-12 and yanked it back, slamming the butt into the side of Jack's face.

Darkness took him once more as his body collapsed against the dock.

*****

Cory was still groaning in pain as his body was carried off the dock and thrown on the ground by several fishermen, all led by Earl who was the one that had procured the rifle. Right next to him, the unconscious body of Jack was kicked several times, and for the second time in two days, Cory feared that he might be dead.

Before long, it was Cory's turn for more abuse. Earl yanked his fist back and sent it flying forward, connecting against Cory's jaw and sending him flying against the ground.

"You stupid son of a bitch!" raged Earl, leaping over Cory's body and pummeling him with more punches. "You tried to steal my money! You were going to take that body! I ought to fucking kill you!"

Cory did his best to shield his head from the blows but it was useless. His head was still spinning and his vision couldn't center on the threat in front of him, leading to Earl getting more hits on him.

"You must be one of those traitor Javans fighting with him!" yelled Earl, gesturing to Jack's unconscious body. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill you right now!"

Cory didn't even respond. He managed to scoot away until he wasn't being hit anymore, only to find that all the rest of the fishermen had rifles trained on him. The situation was getting out of control.

"Maybe we should turn him into the army," suggested Jeb, Earl's partner-in-crime. "With how many troops are in the area, it would be nothing to turn him into them and still get our reward."

Earl grunted. "That's a better idea than going to Corsham, that's for sure. But I'm likely to kill this son of a bitch right here and right now. I only need to turn the body of the one traitor over to get the prize. The Emperor doesn't need two traitors!"

"That's assuming the Emperor is still alive," chirped one of the other fishermen. "With his army destroyed, he may not be much for this world either."

"Shut up, Clem!" raged Earl. "I'm going to get my fucking money one way or another!"

"Then how do you want to do this, Earl?" asked Jeb. "Cage them until the next army group shows up here in Tinhurst? I'm sure it won't be long until another group does."

"That's assuming that group still fights for Bancroft," said the third fisherman. "Which they may not. They may take the body just to get the reward for themselves. Or to prevent Bancroft from taking their heads for retreating."

"No, no, we're going to cage them right now," said Earl. "And we'll wait for the first army unit to arrive. It won't be long now. Besides, we can gauge who might still be loyal to the Emperor. When we find that loyal group, we can then tell them who's in the cage. If they aren't loyal, then they have no reason to know that we have Jack Easterbrook."

No one seemed to have any problems with that plan, and soon all the fishermen reacted by throwing both Cory and Jack into their own separate fishing cages closer to the village. Jack was thrown in first, his body giving no protest as he was still unconscious. Cory was thrown in secondly, finding that there was barely any room to stretch by the small size of the cage.

"You don't have to do this," said Cory to Earl, trying one more time to turn this situation around.

"Fuck you," snarled Earl, rattling the cage with his rifle butt once the door was slammed shut and padlocked. "I was going to give you the benefit of the doubt too. You abuse my trust and I'll kill you myself."

"Listen to me why don't you," said Cory. "You said it yourself--the Javan Army is defeated. That means Bancroft is defeated. The Fourthies are going to march straight to Belfort and put an end to this war. Do you really want to be found to be the one that turned over Easterbrook's body to an emperor who's not going to be in power for much longer?"

Earl regarded Cory silently for a moment before he snarled again. "Who says Bancroft isn't going to be in power for much longer?"

Cory pointed to Jack. "Bancroft killed his entire family. No one on Jack's side is going to let him live after what he did. Even if Jack is locked in this cage, Bancroft is a dead man walking. Not only him, but so is the man that turned Jack over to him, you get me?"

Earl's eyes looked suspicious but not outright hostile. "How can I trust a word that you're saying? You've already tried to fuck me over once. Not to mention, you're a traitor. Your word means nothing to me."

"Think about it," said Cory. "This is a done deal! Bancroft has been defeated! If you decide to offer Jack back to the Fourthies, I'll see to it that you get your reward! Even after what happened today, it's better off to save him for the Fourthie army."

"I'm no traitor!" raged Earl, slamming his rifle against the cage again. "Bancroft or not, I'll not work against my own people!"

There seemed to be no convincing the man. He was determined to follow his own course to see to it that Jack's body was dropped in Bancroft's lap. In doing so, it was likely that Bancroft would ensure Jack died one way or another (if he was not already dead now).

"You think you're so damned smart just because you're in the Navy," said Earl with nothing but contempt. "You look down on us simple people because of the way we live and the way we talk. Well, you're not getting your way this time! You're going to rot in this cage until the next Javan Army unit gets here. And then we'll see who has the last laugh."

Earl rattled the cage one more time before stepping away back to the village. In the interim, he set up a guard to watch over both Jack and Cory, no doubt to make sure no more surprises happened.

Cory couldn't help but sigh helplessly. There was nothing he could do in this cage. He couldn't try to escape with the audience that he had now.

He could barely even reach Jack by the distance between the two cages. His first thought had been to check Jack's pulse again but that wasn't an option now either.

All he could do was stare at Jack's crumpled body. There was something about him that truly appeared lifeless now. His eyes were closed and Cory couldn't tell if he was even breathing. He knew that hard blows to the head could mean instant death and part of him wondered if Jack survived the explosion of the Destiny only to be killed by an angry Javan fisherman.

For the rest of the afternoon, Jack never awakened or even moved. Cory stayed trapped in his cage as several fleeing Javan Army units made their way south. Earl talked with every unit that appeared in the village, ultimately choosing to keep Jack to himself, no doubt as the units were in the process of trying to get as far away from the battlefield as possible.

And yet, Cory couldn't shake the dreadful feeling that the next group of soldiers to come down the road might be even worse. He just knew that he wasn't going to get lucky enough to have the Western Army appear down the road, rescuing himself and Jack in what would be an extremely fortunate turn of events.

No, things always got worse before they got better.

That thought seemed to be confirmed when he heard another loud commotion around early evening. This was louder than the morning commotion when the news of defeat first descended on the village.

This commotion was more animated, and Cory soon found out why.

"The Emperor is here! The Emperor is here! Emperor Bancroft is in Tinhurst!"

Cory could only groan as he realized the awful truth. Sure enough, he recognized Bancroft's figure moving about the villagers. His posse was smaller than he would have expected but the villagers, namely Earl, wasted no time in telling him who was in the cages.

It was with a degree of anxiety and apprehension that Cory watched Bancroft's very interested face as he approached the cages where they were being held.

It couldn't possibly get any worse than this.

*****

What a hell of a day it had been for Emperor Percival Bancroft.

The sun was starting to set on the western horizon, ending a day that was filled with such tragedy. And it had started so well, with only a single push being needed by the Javan Army to break the Fourthies and end the war.

And yet, that push came from the wrong army. The Fourthies launched a devastating counterattack, overwhelming what was left of the Javan lines and shattering the Javan center. It was joined by an all-out attack on the wings, which quickly overwhelmed the depleted and inexperienced youngsters of the Javan force, crippling the army in one blow.

In a matter of hours, Bancroft's army ceased to exist. Most of its units were running south as fast as their legs could carry them. Even the Elite Guard, which Bancroft had trained and dedicated for his own personal protection, was completely shattered in the last attack. Most of them were killed in the counterattack. Only three of them were left with Bancroft now, forming his own security as he moved southward.

His only remaining deputy was Clark--the loyal man staying when even Menard had absconded with what was left of the army.

At that moment, Bancroft was thankful that he still had Clark. The man was dedicated to the very end, and even if this was the end of his rule, at least he would go down with Clark by his side.

Those thoughts and feelings of melancholy though didn't last long. Not when they came to the small village of Tinhurst. The villagers recognized Bancroft right away, and they couldn't help but let slip of an important prisoner they had in their midst.

"You're sure of this?" asked a shocked Bancroft. "You have Jack Easterbrook in your possession?"

"Of course, your honor," said a simple fisherman, his head bobbing up and down like an idiot. "We found him in the waters yesterday! After the battle! He tried to escape but we messed him up real good! He looks to be dead now!"

Bancroft glanced over at Clark, who was giving him a look of surprise.

Perhaps there might be a way to save this war yet?

"Show him to me," ordered Bancroft. "I want to see his body."

Bancroft was led a short distance away, where they found a series of fishing cages. Two of them contained men in them. One of the men was awake and aware, and he watched Bancroft with eyes of panic.