Rage and Ruin | 2

4 | 3

J A X O N

      I looked down the seemingly endless straight road. It was dark and the trees seemed to close together in the distance, eventually swallowing up the street.

      Arlo suddenly pointed at an incoming car. "There it is!" His sudden outburst startled everyone. Due to his superior sense of sight, he could tell that it was one of the armored trucks that Imperium used to ship their weapons into the fortress.

     Delphinium got into position on the side of the road, her arms outstretched. As the truck got closer and closer we readied ourselves for what she was about to do. It seemed that her powers were getting increasingly stronger, and I didn't know how to feel about it.

     It came so close that I could see the driver through the tinted windshield and Delphinium worked her power over the vehicle. Once again, she showed the might of her abilities. With a horrible screeching, she took control of the brakes and stopped the truck in the middle of the street.

The four of us snapped to action, surrounding the truck before the driver could try to escape. Jake wrenched the driver's door open and calmly pointed his gun inside. With his hands high in the air, the driver stepped out.

     "Get on the ground," Jake commanded. As the man worked for Imperium, we had no idea how dangerous he was.

      "Do you speak English?" We were in Romania, and he might have only spoken their national language. If so, it wouldn't matter; Delphinium could still converse with him.

      He nodded his head fervently.

      "Who are you?" Delphinium asked as Jake aimed the gun at the man's downturned head.

      "I'm Pedro Sana, I'm just a truck driver."

      "You work for Imperium."

      The man stilled at the name. Then, he uttered a hesitant, "Yes."

      "What exactly do they have you doing for them?"

      "Just driving trucks," he was quick to clarify. "I bring their supplies back to the fortress. They pay me good money. I don't ask questions."

      "What supplies do you transport?" I asked, squinting down at the man huddled down on the ground.

      "Anything they want me to. But lately, it's been weapons. There's been a great amount that they're requiring." In my chest, my heart skipped a beat. If they were making many more weapons, then they were planning something large.

      "Do you pick up these weapons straight from the place they're produced?" Jake asked, sounding like he might be onto something.

      "Yes." That made sense; Imperium could transport the weaponry much more under the radar by cutting out unnecessary middle men.

      "Take us there."

      "I...I don't know-"

      "Do it, or I'll shoot." It worried me how many times I'd heard that phrase recently.

      "Okay, okay!" Sana threw up his arms in compliance. "I'll take you to the weapons manufacturer. I was headed there anyway."

      "Wonderful," Jake sneered and allowed the frightened man to get to his feet. "When we're there, distract the workers for long enough to let us get out unseen. If you do anything to sabotage our operation..." He held up his gun and let it do the rest of the talking for him.

      When Sana relented, we all went to the back of the truck. It was empty, as the driver had just come back from the fortress. We all assembled ourselves in the large space and Sana shut the doors. The darkness enveloped us; the only source of light came from the tiny cracks in the double doors.