STALEMATE: Part Three

I made a promise...

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Welcome to the finale of STALEMATE! For the best experience, please read parts one and two first.

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Pavel slowly let the breath out of his lungs as his vision wavered and his heart galloped in his chest.

Noah stood perfectly still, his hands in the air as he looked down for any sign of a bullet wound. He found nothing.

“That was a warning shot! Pavel yelled, “Call your boat back, or the next one won’t miss!”

Pavel emptied the chamber and loaded another bullet.

"Hey, listen to me! I'm not here to hurt you."

Pavel paused at the sound of another human's voice. It had been so long. It was enough to make him hesitate.

"This is a military facility; civilians aren't allowed!" he shouted back.

Noah stepped forward, his hands still in the air.

"I'm aware of that, but to my knowledge, this archive hasn't been in use since the armistice. It also looks to me like you could use some help."

Noah pointed to the sky, gesturing at the oily black spreading like ink on a page.

Pavel looked up briefly and thought about the thing locked up deep underground.

"What do you know about it?" he asked.

"Why don't we start with names? I'm Noah; I'm a scientist."

"Corporal Pavel Stanislav, badge number one-alpha-two-three-niner-zulu."

"Okay, Corporal, this isn't an interrogation; I don't need your badge number. Why don't we put the gun down, and I can explain why I'm here?"

Pavel lowered the rifle, overriding years of military programming that had conditioned him to act before thinking. Noah lowered his hands and smiled.

"Are you from HQ?" Pavel asked.

Noah furrowed his brow. "No, I'm not with the Petrovian military; I'm an independent contractor. I was hired to visit decommissioned archives like this and report on their status."

"Why would they need to send someone? I report the status to HQ daily. I’ve been doing it for years.”

Noah's breath hitched in his lungs. He never was a good liar. "That's odd; there must be an issue with the connection. Things have been degrading since the war ended. As I'm sure you know, maintenance is not exactly Petrovia's top priority.”

The wind started to pick up. Pavel watched as Noah desperately tried to keep the papers in his overstuffed folder.

"Let's discuss this inside," Pavel said.

The two men went into the main archive. Noah had to stifle his amazement as he gazed upon the numerous shelves of books and ornate display cases, all filled with relics and history lost to the greater world.

"Incredible," Noah whispered.

"It truly is. Come, have a seat here," Pavel said, gesturing to one of the tables.

Noah draped his coat over the back of the chair and sat down. Pavel set his rifle down, removed his suit's helmet, and sat across from him.

Noah’s heart sank when he saw the open sores on Pavel’s face.

"Now, tell me why you're here," Pavel said.

"Well, as I mentioned, I am an inspector and chronicler sent to catalog the information in Petrovia's various archives. For posterity."

Pavel's eyes wandered down to the papers on the table in Noah's open folder. They were certainly Petrovian documents.

"Let me see what you have here," Pavel said, reaching for one of the papers.

"No! These are classified!" Noah said, reaching out to grab Pavel's arm.

That's when Pavel saw it, a barcode tattooed onto the bottom of Noah's forearm.

"I knew it!" Pavel shouted, grabbing his rifle from the table.

Noah cursed under his breath as the skin on his right arm peeled back. From inside, a small automatic pistol emerged, mounted to a metal anchor that ran parallel to where his bones would be. It snapped out with machine-like precision, aiming directly at Pavel.

The two men sat in silence.

"You think you're clever? You Anduvian spies are all the same! Nothing but a machine masquerading as a human being!"

"Pavel, please, I don't want to hurt you," Noah said.

"I don't care that you have a weapon in your arm; it's no match for my speed!"

"Pavel, stop. All I have to do is think about firing, and this weapon will kill you in less than a quarter of a second. Just put your gun down, and let's talk."

"What does a machine want with the archive anyway? Why are you here?"

"I'm not a machine, Pavel ."

"Yes, you are! You weren't born; you were manufactured!"

"If I'm just a machine, why would I come here and try to reason with you? Would a machine appeal to your humanity? No! It would simply end you and be done with it. A machine is calculated. Efficient. I am no mere machine."

Pavel shook his head. "No! No more mind games! You are here to steal, to sabotage!"

"Pavel, the war has been over for ten years. When was the last time you heard from the Petrovian military?"

Pavel's eyes scanned the room as his mind searched for an answer.

"I...it has been..." he trailed off.

"You've spent every day following a protocol for a country that no longer exists."

"No, you lie!" Pavel shouted.

Noah stood up slowly, the gun in his arm accounting for the movement, keeping itself trained on Pavel's head.

"When was the last time you saw your family? Do you have a wife? Children?"

Pavel took one shaking hand off his rifle to wipe the tears from his eyes.

"I made a promise!" he said.

"Yes, and you fulfilled your duty to your country."

"No, I made a promise to my father. He told me to make sure it never escapes."

Noah's eyes went wide. "What are you keeping here, Pavel? Is Gaia here?"

Pavel slapped his head. "No, I shouldn't have said that!"

“What’s your plan, Pavel? Are you going to shoot me? If not, I’d say we’re at an impasse.”

“I don’t want to shoot you; I want you to leave!” Pavel shouted.

“I can’t do that, my friend.”

“I made a promise! Why can’t you understand that?” Pavel asked, lowering the rifle to meet Noah’s gaze.

Noah took the opportunity to grab Pavel’s rifle barrel. He tore the gun from Pavel’s hands and threw it onto the ground.

"You have to set her free, Pavel! You know what you’re doing here is wrong! You know it as well as I do, but you’re so set in your ways that you can’t see clearly. Tell me I’m wrong!”

Pavel fell onto his knees, burying his face in his hands, and began to sob. All of his training, all the promises he made to his country and his father, they didn't matter anymore. The weight of it all was crushing him.

Noah’s gun retreated back into his arm. His synthetic skin crawled over the hole.

"We may have been enemies once, Pavel, but no more. It's time to undo the sins of our leaders."

"But, Father said if Gaia gets out, she will destroy the world. He told me she must remain in Petrovian hands for the sake of everything and everyone.”

Noah laid a hand on Pavel's shoulder. "Your father said that because someone else told him it was true, and that person believed it because someone else told them it was true."

Pavel composed himself and looked up into Noah's eyes.

"They lied to us?" he asked.

"I don't know, Pavel. It has been so many years since I’ve seen her. For all I know, Petrovia’s experiments have turned her into a vengeful demon hellbent on revenge. The documents I’ve gathered only paint a portion of the picture. All I know is that she must be freed, and deep down, I think you would agree.”

Noah helped Pavel to his feet. Pavel's entire world was crumbling around him. He felt confused and terrified, but most of all, he felt deep and profound regret.

“My heart shatters every time I hear her screams. I knew I was hurting her, and yet I did nothing.” Pavel shook his head. "I am the machine, not you. For ten years, I did what I was told. For ten years, I questioned nothing and did what I was told! What does that make me?"

Noah laid a hand on Pavel’s shoulder.

"It makes you a good soldier. You’ve fulfilled your duty. It's time to set Gaia free."

Pavel nodded. "And what will happen then?"

"I don't know, but you don't need to worry about that."

"Why not?"

"Because I'm going to be the one to free her," Noah said.

"No, I should do it," Pavel said.

"The radiation alone has already done enough damage to you. I’m not human, so I’m immune to it. Tell me how to get to her, and I will see it done."

Pavel shared the process and codes needed to access the vault deep beneath the archive. Noah diligently took notes.

"I have a boat coming back in 24 hours. I want you to take it."

"What about you?" Pavel asked.

"This is the last stop on my journey."

“But why? I don’t understand.”

“You don’t need to; I have my reasons. I just want you to leave in my stead. Start fresh. Get back to your life.”

Pavel grabbed Noah and hugged him. Noah was shocked, but he ultimately returned the gesture.

"Thank you," Pavel said, "It seems I was wrong about you. You're not a machine; you're an angel."

"Thank you for letting me free her. I made a promise, just like you, and I intend to see it through."

Noah gave Pavel the funds to pay the captain in the morning, and after that, they parted ways. Noah went down to the vault while Pavel carefully gathered his things. He tried to pull the photos from their place on the wall outside, but they would not move without tearing. He would have to leave them behind.

The next morning, a ship's horn blared in the distance. Pavel placed a hand on the photo of his wife and children. He smiled as tears blurred his vision.

"I'll see you soon," he whispered.

Though the ship captain was concerned about the sudden change in passengers, his questions ceased when he saw that Pavel had the money for the trip's second leg.

Pavel stared at the horizon as the ship departed, eager to take the first step into the next chapter of his life.

Meanwhile, Noah was deep underground, standing at the vault door with his hand on the glass. He had been there all night.

Alarms blared around him as the facility's self-destruct systems prepared to destroy the evidence of Petrovia's crimes against the cosmos.

Gaia would survive, but Noah would not. He took out a small photo from his pocket and stared into the eyes of his maker.

“I’m sorry it took so long to find you, but I’m here now. I hope you can forgive them and me as well.”

Noah closed his eyes and held the photo close as explosions tore through the facility and the vault ruptured, freeing what was left of Gaia.

Pavel watched the explosion in the distance and felt a renewed sense of purpose for the first time in over a decade. The war was over, and now, the healing could finally begin.

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