Aquatica: Earth Reborn Chapter 11: The Fire

Disclaimer: Reader discretion is advised – This book may contain scenes of violence and content unsuitable for readers under 18 years old. Additionally, please note that this work is purely fictional and not based on any real people or events.

“Get down!” Jake shouted, pulling Carl Jr. to the ground and shielding him with his body.

Sam and Danny, weapons at the ready, began searching for the source of the shot. Sarah and Rachel, hearing the commotion, ran up from below deck, their hearts pounding.

Sarah dropped to her knees beside Carl, frantically pressing her hands against his wound to staunch the bleeding. “Stay with us, Carl!” she pleaded, tears streaming down her face.

Jake’s mind raced. They were under attack, and the Cleansers had found them. He needed to protect his people and get them out of there immediately. He barked orders, his voice steady despite the panic gripping him.

“Everyone, get to the boats! We leave now!” He looked at Sam and Danny. “Cover us! We need to get Carl on board.”

As the group scrambled to obey, Carl Jr. clung to Carl while Sarah and Jake was holding on to him, his small body shaking with sobs. Jake lifted Carl, struggling to carry his weight, and moved toward the boats. The dawn was alive with tension, each second stretching into an eternity as they raced to escape the unseen enemy.

Carl Jr.’s cry of anguish was heart-wrenching. Imani immediately rushed to Jakes aid, dragging him behind some crates for cover. Sarah held the screaming child, bringing him down the stairs to safety as Rita rushed to Carl’s side, sobbing deeply.

“Carl is bleeding badly,” Sarah said, her voice trembling. She examined the wound and then looked at Jake, fear in her eyes. The silent exchange between them spoke volumes—they both knew Carl wouldn’t make it.

“Imani, keep pressure on the wound,” Jake commanded, trying to maintain his composure.

Everyone ducked in fear as they took cover, tension filling the air. Suddenly, a boat with a white flag waving approached. Several men stood on board, one stepping forward with a megaphone. “We just want to talk,” he announced. “We know you are there. There is no need to hide. The general only wants to talk. He is merciful, but do not test his patience.”

Another man rushed to the speaker, whispering in his ear. The man with the megaphone then held a walkie-talkie near the microphone, while another man boosted the signal with a transmitter box. The group, hidden behind crates and walls, peered out cautiously.

A strong, intimidating voice boomed from the speaker. “This is the general. Surrender now. It is over.”

Silence hung in the air, the only sound being the soft lapping of water against the boat. The general’s voice broke the tension again. “Someone wants to say hi.”

A man was dragged forward on the boat, pleading for his life. “Please, please, let me go!” His voice sent a cold shiver down Rachel’s spine. She recognized it immediately and stood up. Tears welled up in her eyes as she stood up.

“Rachel, what are you doing? Get down!” Sarah whispered urgently, trying to pull her back to safety.

Rachel ignored her, her focus solely on the man on the boat. “Brian!” she cried out, her voice filled with emotion. “Brian, oh my god Brian!”

Brian, his face bruised and bloodied, looked at her with a mix of relief and desperation. The huge man they had captured earlier shouted, “Come out, you cowards!”

“Please, sir, don’t hurt him!” Rachel pleaded. “Oh my God, please don’t hurt him. Brian, I love you!”

The general’s voice interrupted again, chilling and authoritative. “Surrender. I give you eight seconds to decide. Eight… seven… six…”

Rachel, overwhelmed with emotion, shouted, “I surrender!” But Jake and the rest remained silent.

Rachel looked at them, her eyes begging for hope. Jake met her gaze, his own eyes filled with sorrow. “If we surrender, we all die,” he said quietly, the weight of their situation bearing down on them all.

Rachel tried to stop the countdown, her voice frantic, but the general ignored her. “Two… times up,” he said coldly.

Brian’s desperate shout, “I love you, Rac—” was cut off as he was beheaded, his head plunging into the water, turning the surface crimson. Rachel screamed in shock, grabbing a machine gun from Sam and opening fire on the boat.

Chaos erupted as men ducked for cover, one falling to her bullets. In retaliation, they fired back, bullets striking Rachel in the chest and head. She fell dead beside Sarah and Sam.

Jake and Sam, under fire, returned shots while Jake shouted, “We need to leave now!” A massive explosion rocked the platform as a rocket hit the upper sector, flames engulfing it. The metallic walls around them rattled with ricocheting bullets. They had no choice but to make a nail-biting escape.

Jake and Sam continued to provide cover fire, allowing Danny and Imani to carry Carl down to the boats. They lowered Carl down, everyone else scrambling to the bottom. Amidst the chaos, Jake took a moment to assess their dire situation. The firefight had thinned their ranks, and the upper sector was a blazing inferno.

Sam and Jake managed to take out most of the attackers on the boat, but the huge man and another soldier were still reloading rockets, preparing for a wipeout. Meanwhile, the general and other boats were closing in fast. Fear flickered in Sam’s eyes as he turned to Jake. “We can’t escape. They’ll catch up. We have no cover.”

Jake leaned over to look at the boat. “One of us has to create a diversion. We have to blow that boat up.” He turned to Danny. “Give me one of the flares. I’ll ram the boat into them. It’ll give you enough time to escape.”

“No, Jake,” Sarah immediately disagreed. “Are you mad? I will not let you do it.”

“I’ll do it,” Carl said weakly. “Look at me. I’m not going to make it.”

Jake and Sam exchanged a pained look. They didn’t like the idea, but it was the only sane option. Jake nodded reluctantly.

“No!” Rita cried, tears streaming down her face. “I will stay with you.”

Carl held her, trying to console her. “Rita, you have to live. Be strong for Carl Jr. I would do anything to keep you both alive.”

His words, filled with raw emotion, pierced through the chaos. Rita, sobbing uncontrollably, kissed Carl one last time. “I love you,” she whispered.

“I love you too,” Carl replied, his voice breaking. Keep our son safe.”

Carl looked at his son, Carl Jr., and with a trembling voice, said, “Look after Mum for me, will you, kiddo? I love you, son.” Carl Jr. burst into tears, clinging to his father in a desperate embrace. The approaching boats and another explosion rocking the rigs cut their farewell short.

With a final, sorrowful look, Carl took the flare from Danny. “Go, now. I’ll buy you the time you need.”

The group, led by Imani, moved quickly to the boats, keeping low under the cover fire provided by Sam and Jake.

Carl, weak but determined, climbed into the boat with the flare. Danny gave him a quick crash course on the controls. Danny swiftly made holes in fuel barrels causing the fuel to pour out on the boat and on the water.

Then jumped of to the boat. Carl started the engine, aiming straight for the enemy’s vessel. Carl Jr. screamed, “Daddy!” for the first time, as Rita held him tight, his little arms stretching out as if trying to grasp his father’s hand from across the water.

The words echoed in Carl’s mind, bringing a bittersweet smile to his face. Summoning every last ounce of courage, Carl pushed the throttle to full, nearly lifting the front of the boat.

The escaped man and another mercenary had taken out another RPG from a crate they had onboard their boat. They were preparing to fire another rocket at the rig.

The rest of the group piled into the second boat hidden from the vision of the general. Jake and Sam continuing to fire back at the attackers from the rig.

Carl was in severe pain and weak from the loss of blood. As he pushed he started to speed up and move away from the rig towards the boat. Carl’s lit the flare, holding it aloft like a beacon of hope.

The men on the enemy boat had almost loaded the rocket, ready to fire. Carl lit the flare and, just before the boats collided, threw it toward the spilled fuel. As his boat rammed into them, the fuel and the rockets onboard created a massive explosion.

The fire spread rapidly, trailing across the water all the way back to the rig creating a huge firewall.

“Let’s go!” Jake shouted to Danny. Under the cover of the spreading flames, they made their escape. Jake looked back at the rig, now engulfed in fire, a place they had once hoped to call home.

As they fled, the burning wreckage of the enemy boat tears streamed down Rita’s face as she held Carl Jr., who was in shock.

Jake, at the helm of their boat, looked back one last time at the burning platform they had called home. They had lost so much, but they had to keep moving. For Carl, for Rachel, for everyone they had lost, they had to survive.

Everyone on their boat was crying, the weight of their losses pressing down on them. Jake felt a crushing sense of responsibility regretting not going with his gut feeling earlier.

He looked at Sarah, holding her tightly. The air was filled with a heavy silence, broken only by the crackling of the distant fire on the rig getting faint.

On the other side of the firewall, the general peered through his binoculars, his vision obscured by smoke and flames. He couldn’t see the escaping boat, unaware they had slipped away or that they had another boat.

He turned to the woman beside him. “Once the fire dies down, I will go onboard. I want to see their burnt corpses.”

His voice was cold and terrifying, a promise of the relentless pursuit they would face. To be contd