Chapter 12: The Boise Rebellion

“Can you give me a status on the kids?” Jalen asked through Greg’s Comsat device pinned to Greg’s survival outfit.

The rancher was busy administering hypo-stimulants to each of the kids’ necks. They all resided in Greg’s home container, and their headcovers had been removed. The boys’ faces showed fatigue and wear, almost as if they were famished. Most were already sitting down on the bed or on the floor due to the limited space available.

“Not good, but not bad either,” Greg said. “Their mask filters haven’t been replaced since they were taken. I’m picking up concentrations of toxins in their system, but it looks like they’ve been housed in those APCs. I’m giving them medication, and I got food and clean water for them as well.”

“Can I talk with one of them?” Jalen asked.

Greg leaned on the oldest kid. Payton had a pale complexion on his face. He seemed the most stout of the group, trying to be strong in the face of the other four kids. The oldest teen’s hair was very short, almost as if he was devoid of hair entirely.

“I’m here,” the kid’s voice echoed in the container.

“Payton,” Jalen spoke to him. “Are you alright?”

“Yes...” the child’s voice was heavy and slow. “Greg is helping us.”

“Did the Itreans mistreat you? How are the others?”

“The Itreans didn’t mistreat us. They just ... didn’t know how to help us.”

“They treated you like an Itrean,” Greg remarked. “They expected you to be as resilient as they are in this environment.”

“Yeah,” Payton replied.

There was an outside sound of engines roaring as Greg could hear the hoverbike engines rev up and down. It had been well over thirty minutes so far as the rancher continued to assess the kids. He began to hand out various foods, from MREs and drinks for the kids to eat.

“Thank you, mister,” Jeremy replied, getting a hot meal. His brother was already scarfing down on a small bowl of noodles.

“When can you get back to the dome?” Jalen asked.

“As soon as my partner finishes up playing with the mercenaries,” Greg answered.

“The sooner you get back, the better. I’ve already let the families know their kids are alright.”

“Mom?” Warren replied with a cent of happiness and relief in his voice.

“I agree,” Greg remarked. “I’ll try to get them back as soon as possible. It’ll probably take thirty minutes at most at top speed.”

“Payton?” Jalen asked through the comms. “Did the Itreans hurt any of you? Touch you the wrong way? Anything?”

“Hurt? No,” Payton replied. “But, ... the women were ... they ... I don’t know.”

“It’s alright. I know you, five, handled yourselves out there. Your father raised you good, you hear?”

“Thanks,” the teen showed a smile on his face.

“Jalen,” Greg stood up and tried to put a little bit of distance between him and the kids. “Orias gave the kids to the Hora’da...”

“I heard you the first time, Greg,” Jalen replied. “Get yourself back here.”

“Am I going to have a problem with the authorities?”

“No. I’m letting them know you’re coming and that you got the kids.”

“That isn’t what I’m concerned about, Jalen. Your leader is a sellout and a nutjob. Others had to have been involved instead of just her. Is there going to be a problem?”

“I swear, man. They won’t stop you from bringing the kids back. I swear it.”

“I hope so. These mercenaries were almost ready to put every bullet into me and my rig. Casimir was ready to beat me into a pulp earlier today. You can tell them I’m coming in hot and ready. If any of them try to stop me...”

“Just ... bring them back, Greg,” Jalen said.

“Be ready.”

Greg snapped the Comsat device off. As he looked at the kids, the man had already strategized what he was going to do.

“Payton,” Greg spoke to him. “I’m going to need to have you in my passenger seat in the cabin. I need you to help get me back to your home. You think you can do that?”

“Yes...” the teenager replied.

It had been almost an hour. The entire rig had finished pulling into one of Dome 2’s garage facilities. The door behind it had finished closing before flushing clean air into the entire vicinity. Greg looked over to the passenger sitting beside him. The teenage boy took his headcover off before looking over at Greg, who followed suit.

“Thank you,” he told the kid.

“Thank you for bringing us home,” Payton replied.

“Well, I’m not taking any chances.” The rancher was ready. He reached behind his seat and pulled out his AK-74, releasing the bolt and flipping the rifle on safe.

“Let’s go,” the man said. He tapped a button linking a comms into the interior of the home container. “We’re here. You’re free to leave.”

With that, Greg opened the door and jumped out, landing on the concrete floor. Payton climbed out of the passenger side door and closed it. The rancher looked at the roof of the home container. Gip’grenda stood up, wearing a set of goggles that she took off and put away. She was busy dusting herself from the sand and dust before she picked up the M4 rifle and shouldered it around her back.

The container’s door opened as the kids slowly climbed out. The interior door slid open as Greg pulled out the stairs for the kids to climb down. Ernesh and a pair of other Boisen officers were the first to enter.

Greg made no hesitation. The moment he saw the authorities, he lifted his rifle and pointed at them. Ernesh held his hands up in surrender.

“Whoa, whoa!” Ernesh replied.

“Don’t fucking move!” Greg told him, keeping his aim at him. His gloved finger was kept away from the trigger. Gip’grenda replied in earnest, unshouldering her rifle and standing ready.

“Greg, I’m not here to fight you! I’m just as confused as you are.”

“Bullshit!” Greg could see pistols holstered on the authorities’ sides. “Looks like Orias decided to change her mind about no weapons. Convenient that the tyrants are the ones that complain about them but don’t hesitate to use them while leaving the others with nothing to defend themselves.”

“Greg! It’s alright!” Jalen’s voice could be heard. The supervisor of the dome entered the room and gestured for the rancher to be at ease. Greg partially lowered his rifle, causing Gip’grenda to relax her stance.

“Are these kids going to be safe?” He asked both of them. “How do I know Orias isn’t going to drop them off a cliff again?” He pointed at Ernesh. “How about you, huh? Plan on shooting your people in the back?”

“I promise you I won’t hurt them!” Ernesh assured him.

“I swear to you, Greg, that everything will be fine,” Jalen added.

Greg could see that Ernesh was deliberately putting himself at the mercy of the rancher. He knew that it was best to drop it, at least for now. He needed answers, so he lowered his rifle. The man gestured to the kids that it was safe for them to rejoin their people. A look of relief could be seen on Jalen’s face.

“Remain close, Gip’grenda,” Greg told her.

“Ok,” she said. She jumped off the roof and shouldered the M4 rifle. Greg stepped up to face Jalen and Ernesh.

“I need answers,” he told them. “How can I trust someone who purposely let those kids be kidnapped?”

“How about the fact that I didn’t know about it?” Ernesh remarked. “I was told that the transport was attacked by Itrean rogues. That was it. I was out there, just as you were, two weeks ago, scouring the countryside trying to find them.”

Greg didn’t seem entirely convinced, but he listened. “What brings you here?”

“Actually,” Ernesh briefly looked at Jalen. “I was on my way to arrest Jalen ... Orias’s orders. Just before I was going to confront him, I received word from him that you found the kids and were on your way back here.”

“You know that Orias is insane, right?”

Ernesh sighed. “I only believed it till I saw those kids. Even then, I still have a hard time believing it. The Itreans attacked us ... I couldn’t believe she sold those kids out in hopes of making peace with them.”

“According to those Itrean mercenaries, they never attacked this dome.”

“What?”

“I don’t know what’s going on either, but they do admit that they attacked the transport after the coordinates were given to them.”

The other authorities looked at one another as they listened to the story. They seemed just as confused as Ernesh.

“There ... might have been something else to add to this story,” Jalen said. “Come ... follow me to my office so I can explain everything ... and what we might do about it.”

Greg looked at Gip’grenda and gave the nod to her. Ernesh did the same, looking at his team before everyone left the garage.

Greg, Gip’grenda, Jalen, Ernesh, and two of the security officers resided in Jalen’s office. Greg felt assured that the kids had been properly reunited with their families. However, there was much to discuss.

“Explain what’s going on,” Greg said to Jalen, who just sat down on his chair.

Jalen looked at Ernesh and the rancher. “The kids belonged to parents who heavily disagreed with Mrs. Orias. She knew that she had political adversaries ... warned them to shut up. I still remember Payton’s father. He hated Orias and her political agenda.”

“Dissidents to her administration,” Ernesh said.

“She’s tyrannical,” Greg countered.

“But, you claimed Orias is crazy. Even if she hated her enemies, why would she commit to such an action as this?”

“She suffers from MDD.”

“MDD?”

“Muck Derangement Disorder ... didn’t you see the signs?”

Ernesh seemed to think about it as he looked at the other security officials. They seemed to nod in agreement.

“Yeah,” Ernesh answered, looking down. “It seemed that each year she was ... acting more and more strange. I thought it was mostly her getting older ... maybe her becoming senile.”

“It didn’t occur to you,” Greg explained. “That Boise’s elections were completely eradicated? That people were fleeing to other domes to get away from her regime?”

“It wasn’t our job to question the government or her policies. Greg, I recognize the flag you have waving on that truck. This isn’t the United States. We’re a gang and nothing more. We’re trying to survive as the Itreans begin carving out our landscape in the process...” Ernesh looked at Gip’grenda. “No offense...”

The lone Itrean in the room didn’t seem offended.

“It doesn’t work that way,” Greg told Ernesh. “The United States exists as long as the people believe in it. There was a time when Boise was a prosperous city, the crown jewel of the Idaho state. I believe in that hope. It was why I went to find those kids and didn’t give up.”

Ernesh nodded. “Thank you.”

“Same here, man,” Jalen added. “Our people are in your debt for what you just did. Never forget that.”

Ernesh turned around and faced the closed window. “You’re telling me that Orias traded those kids off because the parents were her political enemies?”

“It was possible that she did it as a form of ‘protection payment,’” Greg explained. “But, I can’t make sense out of a madwoman, either.”

“It’s funny ... If Orias had told me that they were making offensive speeches and needed to be arrested, I would have listened to her without question. But seeing her do what she did with those kids ... they could have easily died out there ... or made into something worse. All she would have had to do was tell me to search every house, every building, and I’d never stop. I would have combed that entire fucking landscape to get those kids back, but she just ... called it off ... played all virtuous, and as a show to the families that she at least ‘made the effort.’ It’s a crime against humanity.”

Greg looked at Jalen. “And you know it was wrong, too. You could have told me earlier that I was running into some old blood feud.”

“How was he supposed to?” Ernesh questioned. “I was on my way to arrest him ... listening to words of the insane.”

“And the fact that we’re not allowed to voice our opinion about Mrs. Orias,” Jalen said.

The rancher crossed his arms. “So, the next question comes up. What are you two going to do about it?”

Jalen and Ernesh both looked at one another. Both of them were at a loss for words, but Jalen finally summed up the courage to say something.

“Orias ... needs to be overthrown,” Jalen said. “Not for me, but for the people of my dome. She’s too dangerous to remain in power.”

“Yeah,” Ernesh caved in as well. “I’m still supposed to apprehend you, but she’s just going to keep doing what she’s doing. Knowing her, she’ll just toss those kids to the side like they’re nothing.”

“I still wonder if there’s a way to contact the other domes ... mount a ... a...”

“A coup?” Greg hinted.

“ ... Yeah.”

Ernesh sighed. “There’s one idea.”

“What?” Greg asked.

“We just go in ... right now. Greg, you’re already pretty well-armed. Casimir is trying to get everyone armed and trained. Give Orias time, and she’ll have the planetary defense batteries back up and running just to shoot at us. We might not know how to fight well, but neither is Orias’s men.”

Greg seemed to think about it. “Makes sense. If we wait any longer or come back with a larger force, it’ll just mean that Orias will put up a greater defense. The United States would lose a major settlement. The casualties will be high on both sides.”

“And I can’t have that,” Jalen said. “We’re the breadbasket of the west. Everyone is depending on us to feed them. I wonder ... if there’s some way I can still talk some sense into Mrs. Orias.”

“She wanted you arrested,” Greg countered. “The realm of negotiations is over.”

“Casimir isn’t going to bend the knee to you either,” Ernesh added. “I know him well enough.”

“I pretty much got that the moment I saw him.”

Jalen thought about it before he put his hand to his forehead. “I’m left with little choice in the matter. I can choose to flee into exile ... or fight.”

“A woman like Orias, you know what she would do the moment you flee, Jalen. Do you want the same fate to befall the other families that work under you?”

“In other words, the ball’s in my court. Just doesn’t jive with me, man.” The supervisor of the dome thought about it some more and sighed. “Fine ... we’ll do it. We go and fight ... have her thrown out from power. Ernesh, you mind helping me?”

Ernesh seemed to think about it as he looked at the other security officials. They seemed in agreement and willing to fight before they all nodded.

“Yeah, I’m in,” Ernesh said.

“Greg?” Jalen stood up and looked at him. “You got a truck with a machine gun on it. Mind if we use it?”

“If it’s one thing about this whole trip,” Greg said. “Is that leading a revolution was not a part of the whole plan. But, yeah. I’m in ... but just know,” Greg tapped his AK rifle. “Some people are going to die...”

The message was one that Greg seemed more inclined to agree with but one directed at everyone else.

“We do it,” Ernesh said.

“Ok,” Jalen said. “Ernesh, we head out in thirty minutes. I need to have a private chat with Greg and his friend. You three can get yourselves ready. I’m also going to get some of my best people to join up with us as well.”

“You plan on coming for this?”

Jalen shook his head. “I don’t think I have much choice. If we overthrow Orias, I need to pass the message to the settlement that I’m taking charge. Otherwise, it’ll only lead to confusion and chaos.”

“Alright,” Ernesh waved his team to follow them. The three officers all left the room. Greg waited for the office door to close before speaking up with Jalen.

“Are you sure that you can trust him?” Greg asked Jalen.

Jalen sat back down on his chair. “Not really,” he said. “I barely know Ernesh. I’ve met him a few times during my years. Maybe he comes from Dome 3 because he never grew up here. What I do know is that he always followed things by the book ... rigid, but inexperienced. I don’t know...,” he put his hands together and leaned on the desk. “I don’t think I have much choice anyway.”

“What type of followers do you plan on bringing?”

“A few ... Payton’s father is coming, knowing him. He’s got a score to settle with Orias once he finds out how his son went missing. These are people that I trust, but if this all fails, I want to limit the casualties on our sides. Orias will undoubtedly drop the hammer on the families ... make examples of us.”

Jalen looked over at the Itrean. “And what about you, Gip’grenda? This isn’t even your own planet? You want to join in on this, too?”

“If it weren’t for her,” Greg explained. “The Itrean mercenaries would have never surrendered the kids. I don’t know how much you guys would have had to pay them just to meet their demands.”

Gip’grenda seemed happy to hear the comments. “I ... go where Greg goes,” she said.

“You feel ready to be in a revolution?” Jalen asked her.

The Itrean’s feathers lowered some. “No ... but Orias is mean. I don’t like her. I help Greg ... stop her.”

“She knows that I need that fuel, too,” Greg remarked, looking at Jalen. “But I can also promise that if this all works, that trade negotiation we discussed is going to become a reality.”

Jalen smiled a little bit. “That works with me ... But I’ve learned to never count your crop yields before they’re fully grown. There’s something that I need to show you.”

The supervisor got up from his chair and walked over to the nearby office wall where the portrait of Orias resided. Jalen put his hands to it, pulled it from the wall, and tossed it to the side, exposing a number padlock connected to a hidden safe. Then, he inputted a series of coded numbers before pressing his thumb on a scan unit. The locking mechanism disengaged, and the safe’s door opened, exposing a number of various items to those of possible heirlooms. Jalen reached in and pulled out an old walnut wood case before bringing it to the table.

“A long time ago,” Jalen explained. “My grandfather told me a story about the United States ... when it existed. I ... never really thought about it much until you came in. I don’t know how much you know about North American history.”

“I’m quite fluent in it,” Greg told him. “I read plenty of history books in my time.”

“It jives with you, doesn’t it? Well, maybe you’ll like this...”

Jalen opened up the case, exposing what looked like a large revolver, what might have been a 10mm or 45acp pistol. There were signs of wear on it, almost as if it had been used quite frivolously in its ancient past. Regardless, Greg was amazed by the sheer beauty of the gun. The polymer frame was in good shape. The barrel alone was 6 inches in length.

“I’ll be...,” Greg said. “Orias made it sound like she disarmed everyone.”

“She tried,” Jalen replied. “My grandfather made me promise that I would never let this get destroyed. It’s a family heirloom that was passed from generation to generation.”

“This ... is a Ruger VR-60 ... This was one of the last 357 magnum revolvers produced before the company switched to caseless rounds. They manufactured these sometime in 2050, all the way up to the Troubles Era. This is worth a pretty penny.”

“I’m glad that you know all that because I sure didn’t. But, take a closer look at it.”

Greg looked closely at the polymer slide. He noticed a small etching, but it wasn’t any factory labels. It was cut neatly by another person’s hand, most likely a knife or something with a sharp edge.

“A.S.,” Greg said out loud as he thought about it. “I wonder ... tell me what your grandfather passed down to you.”

“He said that our family came from Oregon,” Jalen explained. “That we moved from Portland to further east ... not far from here, I think.”

“Oregon is a state, and Portland is its capital.”

“Yeah, but he said that one of our family members moved into a large town near the border. Apparently, my ancestor had to fight for his life against corrupted police and advanced security. He helped lead a resistance movement to save his neighborhood from being slaughtered.”

“That almost sounds like the Baker City Revolt ... It was considered a brutal watershed event in the established temporary buffer state of Umatilla. Some even considered it to be the opening prelude between the USSA and the URA conflict. You had someone survive through all that?”

Jalen shrugged. “I don’t know the whole story. I just know that my ancestor fought alongside another individual during that time. That person gave him that as a gift, the gun you see before you.”

“A.S ... Aeron Stone ... This is one of Aerondight’s guns.”

“Who was he?”

“Some called him a freedom fighter. Some called him a terrorist. Some called him a man of vengeance. I just know that he was unstoppable in Bakers City. Whatever the case was, your family made a good friend. This isn’t just some rare gun. This could belong to a museum.”

“Isn’t that how everything is? Look, I ... wanted to give the gun to you ... in case the worst happens to me.”

Greg sighed. “I only know that there’s one person that this gun belongs to, and I’m looking at him. This was a gift, a very good gift to defend your life. I’ll see if I have any remaining 357 magnum rounds that I brought with me, but I don’t have much.” He pulled the cylinder and looked at it. “Might have some life still left in it.” He handed the large revolver back to him.

“I’m not much of a gunfighter.”

“Nobody is, but Orias isn’t giving you much of a choice. Our Founding Fathers faced the same predicament against tyranny as you do. Time that we get you and your team ready. It’ll be a crash course in firearms training, but we make do with what we got. Now, if you excuse me. I’m going to need some help removing the trailer behind my rig.” He looked at Gip’grenda. “If the truck’s charging into battle, I don’t want to risk busting up our trailer with your hoverbike along with it. You have the choice to use your bike or not.”

Gip’grenda was quick to shake her head. “No,” she said. “I don’t want to damage it.”

“Alright then...” Greg looked at Jalen. “Let’s get started.”

A towing crane successfully pulled the rear trailer away from the rig. It was neatly placed to the side as the rancher looked at the small team of men and women that would be coming with him. They were all dressed in their survival suits with their headcovers on, trying to familiarize themselves with the firearms that were given to them.

The interior door had opened as Jalen stepped into the garage. Unlike the others, he had a green and blue suit, color-coded for the others to identify. On his side was the holstered revolver that he had shown Greg earlier.

The rancher walked up to Ernesh. At the moment, he would engage and reengage his pistol’s safety, ensuring it was safely pointed away from everyone.

“Can I take a look at this?” Greg asked.

“Sure,” Ernesh handed over his pistol to Greg. Greg looked at the gun, noting its more advanced features and slim appearance. Unlike his older guns, this looked like a firearm produced in the 23rd century.

“M22s,” the rancher remarked. “Martian pistols ... I look forward to the day we’re making our own guns instead of relying on obsolete hand-me-downs.” He handed the pistol back to him.

“We had to scrounge these,” Ernesh said. “There was one last cache that Orias hadn’t melted down.”

“They’re good pistols, but I don’t have any caseless rounds for them. What else may Casimir be using?”

“Same pistols. There were a few rifles too ... same time period maybe.”

“PDW-1s. Caseless and laser rifles used before the Gabatrix Experiment.” He raised his voice so that everyone could hear. “Listen up!” Greg announced to the group. “As many of you know, we’re heading straight into Dome 1. Most likely, Orias has about a dozen armed men and women defending her. Don’t let the fact that they bullied you around with stun batons make them any better than you. They’re just as inexperienced with the guns they’re using. You have to get used to the bangs and booms that you’re going to hear. It’s going to be loud, and people are going to get hurt. Orias’s soldiers may have access to caseless and laser-based weaponry. Lasers have extended ranges and can hit their target instantaneously. However, it’s slow to kill. You’ll feel an intense burning sensation. The moment you do, move out of the way. Anything else is better at closer ranges and can take out a target much more quickly. If you end up getting one of these rifles, there will be a button near the handgrip. That’s the selector switch. Green is safe. Red is fire. There will be a second button beside it. Red L means laser. Blue C means Caseless.”

“Don’t waste your shots,” Ernesh told the others. “Greg’s lending his guns to us, but he has limited ammunition. When we storm Dome 1, use whatever the others drop. I don’t care if it comes from the people we shoot or the person beside you.”

“I’m going in with you guys,” Jalen told everyone. “My goal is to make sure Orias is removed from power. You know what’s at stake if we let her remain in her position. If it becomes necessary ... take her out. She’s mad, and it’ll only get worse for her. If I die and you still manage to take out Orias ... Ernesh will have the Boisen leadership. Are we ... clear with this?”

“Yeah,” many of the men and women responded.

Greg pointed at the top of his truck. “I have an M2 machine gun mounted on my truck. It’s going to be powerful, but I only have so many rounds for it. Gip’grenda knows how to use it and will be using it to help provide cover fire for all of us.”

By now, the six others, besides Gip’grenda, Greg, Ernesh, and Jalen, were all but used to seeing the lone alien woman. She had been neatly perched and resting by the top turret. The Itrean almost seemed bored and ready to get started.

“You ready?” Greg asked Jalen.

“Yeah, let’s go,” Jalen said.

“Let’s move out! Everyone climb up on the roof and find a good place to perch yourself. Any person that can’t, grab the main side bars and plant yourself there. This isn’t going to be some luxury trip.”

“For Boise!” a man’s voice yelled out. Greg recognized it as Payton’s father. He seemed more than eager to go. In his shouldered arm was an old Remington 870.

Greg waved Jalen to follow him. The administrator was skittish, but kept his confidence up. As the others were climbing up on the truck, Greg handed something to him.

“What’s this?” Jalen asked.

“Additional 357 magnum rounds. It’s not much, but it’ll help.”

“Yeah...,” he replied before holstering the revolver and stuffing the remaining bullets in his pocket.

Greg opened up the door and watched Jalen climb into the passenger seat of his truck. When the two men sat comfortably in the cabin, Greg powered on the vehicle. Jalen seemed to know that everything was going to get rough.

“Destiny,” Jalen remarked.

“What?” Greg asked.

“I wonder if my great, great, great, ... whatever ... my grandfather long ago ... If there was man, just like you, doing what he did ... doing the same thing now.”

“I don’t know. History repeats, but it doesn’t always follow the rules when it does. I just know that I want us to be like what we once were.”

“Assuming we survive, you’ll probably get your wish. Thank you for doing this ... even for your little green friend, too.”

“Just make sure you know where to point that gun. Make each shot count.”

“I’ll try...”

All was quiet in the broken streets of Boise. Amongst the numerous ruined buildings in the distance was Dome 1. The hint of flying dust continued to push through the air before it died down.

However, that silence ended as a truck barreled through at top speed. It pushed through as the ten wheels slammed through the hard rock, the engine working at its maximum capacity. The Autumn was nearing its destination point. Gip’grenda wore a set of goggles as other men and women remained low on the roof.

Greg maintained control of the truck, often looking at his GPS tracker. Jalen seemed to grow increasingly tense as he sat in the seat.

“Attention incoming vehicle!” the CB radio called out. Greg recognized that to be Casimir’s voice and grabbed the microphone before bringing it to his face.

“Casimir, how’s your day?” Greg greeted him.

“I’ve warned you before. You’ll be fired upon, do you understand me?!”

“Casimir?” Jalen tried to say. “Can I talk to him?”

Greg handed the microphone to Jalen.

“Casimir,” Jalen announced to him. “This is Superintendent Jalen. Do you copy?”

“Jalen, why are you with Greggory heading straight to our dome?”

“Greg has recovered the children and brought them back to us.”

“What!? How?”

“He just did ... all five are well, but we learned from the Itrean mercenaries that Orias traded the children to them.”

There was a long pause. Greg looked over to Jalen. The bitter silence didn’t seem promising.

“Casimir?” Jalen questioned. “Are you there? Orias needs to be placed under arrest.”