"So it's a simple as walk in and grab it?" Duratai poked at the marked spot on the map.
"In essence yes. You'll have far more trouble getting there I believe." Troketh said, leaning back.
He admired the teal Carbon-Plastic construction. He and Duratai had met here several times before, yet the design never failed to enchant him.
"Moving through that bast…"Duratai glanced up at Keth, who was focussing elsewhere. "Through your brother's territory is a dangerous move."
"Unless you're moving civilians."
"No. I would never get away with using human…"
"The big picture man." Keth interrupted. "Once you have this our plan will be in motion."
"I guess we can just give the island a wide enough berth." Duratai rose to his feet and dusted himself.
He took the map, folded it and pressed it roughly into his breast pocket.
"Any reason you don't go get it?"
"They don't call my brother the seer for no reason. He has a knack for seeing the other of our kind. I would be like a beacon moving through his space. Even here we are not totally safe."
"I like the guy more and more." Duratai said making a rude gesture at the ceiling.
"I guess you'll know if we failed. Just keep an eye out for the mushroom cloud." Duratai said with some humour as he turned to leave.
"I always know." Troketh called after him.
Duratai stood outside staring up at the ruins of the city. His mind however was elsewhere. This mission could make or break his career in the resistance. He was going to have to careful and clever. The High Commander could also not get wind of it, or she would claim the glory for herself. He stalked over to his aircar heavy in thought. Only when Duratai had been flying for some time did he start to feel like himself. An idea was coming together. If his plan worked, he would be responsible for turning the tide of the resistance once and for all.
Two days later Duratai and his most trusted men drove into the wastes on a ground transport. They were wearing civilian garb and carried no weapons openly. If they were to be attacked they would have little to no defence. The journey to the marked spot on the map while not far, took them less than 20 kilometers from the island of Kez Visat. The destination was an old war bunker, apparently occupied currently by robotic sentries. At least it was supposed to be. Duratai doubted they would still be running five thousand years later.
Besides for the dust the trip was uneventful. In the distance Duratai could see the lights from the mush eaters' villages. He took some mental notes of the layout of the area. Unlike the other ground villages, this one had several concentric rings of walls around it. This too Duratai had a plan for. But that had to wait. If Troketh wasn't full of shit, they were about to have the find of the century. Nobody spoke during the trip. Only once they were all but there did the driver pipe up.
"Commander. I think we're here."
Duratai had little more than a mark on a map. But the bunker entrance stood out from the wasteland sand at an angle. It was also the only distinctive feature anywhere he could see. The door had seen better days but stood fast. It wasn't clear how the God of Minds knew it was here or what was inside, but knowing him he probably had a hand in it. It took four men to open the door and it fell to one side with a crash tearing the hinges as it went.
"Right boys. Let's go find ourselves an amulet." Duratai said as he started his decent into the unknown.
He had his weapon drawn with a flashlight attached. The inner bunker seemed to devour the light. Against one of the walls they found a crumpled metal pile. Most likely a security robot long past its life time. They decided to split up into three groups. Duratai had no layout of the inside. He only knew what he was looking for. Other than that he knew only to be wary. They had been snooping around for nearly half an hour before gunshots rang out.
"Report!" Duratai ordered not taking his eyes of the light he was casting.
"My fault sir. Got spooked by some inactive avatars."
"Inactive?"
"Roger. They're just standing th-"
"Fire at will!" Duratai yelled. "We've been trapped."
His words were still echoing through the facility when the first avatar jumped him. He took care of it easy enough. Some of them were armed but the fighting died down soon enough. Duratai doubted their purpose was defence.
"Double time team. We just rang the fucking dinner bell."
It took a few more wrong turns until team B reported that they had found what they were looking for. The order was given to regroup. When Duratai arrived in the room it was bathed in a soft red light. In the center stood a gem. It looked like red tinted glass. A pedestal beside that had several shards of what looked like the same material.
"Grab it and let's roll" Duratai readied the insulated container. One of his men, in his excitement or hubris, decided to pick up the gem with his bare hands. The room flashed bright white and where the man stood now only embers were drifting to the ground.
"Can someone else grab it that isn't a goddamn moron?" This elicited a nervous chuckle among some the older team members.
"Mother loving rookies man." Came a comment from somewhere in the gloom.
A more competent member donned their insulated gloves and transferred the gem and the shards to the sealed container.
"Right. Let's scram. The islanders are likely already on their way. Move, move, move." Duratai was already making a bee line for the exit. As the resistance reached their vehicle, the shapes coming down from the island were already visible.
"This is going to be tight team. Let's go like our lives depend on it. And it does."
The ground vehicle took off at its full speed with little regard for safety. They had to put proper distance between themselves and the incoming aerial force. Not long into the journey it became apparent that the relatively slow transport would not be fast enough to escape detection.
"Give those assholes a show." Duratai chocked through the dust.
The back of the transport swung open, revealing a large weapon. The barrel was rectangular and slit down the middle. A less reserved member of the crew kissed the barrel.
"Little lady's first day out." They commented endearingly.
Seconds later the weapon cracked and spat lightning. An instant later one of the aircraft burst as if it hit a wall.
"How's the new toy?" Duratai asked with a grin, fully knowing how well it works.
"She seems to like the birdies" the gunner replied, drawing laughter from the crew.
A second shot cracked and a third. By the time the fourth aircraft burst into pieces the pursuit was over. The entire resistance team cheered. Spirits were high as they made their way to the ruins.
Some hours later they reached the old city limits. The rowdy crowd echoed through the ruins along with the hum of the six-wheeler's engine.
"Here." Duratai commanded over the commotion.
The truck slowed, stopping by an unremarkable mound that was once a high class bank. None of the resistance members had any notion of what a bank was. It hardly mattered as no amount of currency was worth a single cup of water in the world after The War of the Gods. The commander detached an electric bike from the transport, gave some directions to his team and they set off in opposite directions.
A while later Duratai abandoned the bike. He had to leave as little trace of his movement as possible. A complicated path through ruined tunnels and buildings he finally made his camp in an old police station. The ages had left little more than a concrete box. The lack of water greatly reduced the deterioration of the infrastructure, but the ravages of time leaves nothing standing forever. Duratai slept little and was traveling again before sunrise. He had hidden his aircar well out of sight. By noon he had reached it. He assumed his trail had gone sufficiently cold by then. Unfortunately he would later discover that his team were hunted by The Seer himself. He had not taken too kindly to their refusal to share information. The transport and crew were buried under the remains of a building and would never be discovered. Only their disappearance would be noted and mourned.
Unaware of any of this and feeling like a hero, Duratai opened the throttle on his aircar to full as it soared into the sky. In a day or two's flight he would revolutionise the resistance. He stared at a flying island off on the horizon with a sneer.
"Coming for you fuckers soon." He promised himself. Aiming and firing a finger gun at the island as he jetted toward victory.