The Power of Five Oblivion

rummaged around and pulled out a bottle of water, some processed cheese and biscuits and a couple of tins of fruit. Matt saw at once that there wasn’t a lot of food but, as hungry as he was, he didn’t complain. There were thousands of people camped out here and no way of getting fresh supplies. How long had the World Army been here? Days maybe, or weeks. But with the cold, the unrelenting wind and snow, it was clear they were already running out of time.
    “I can’t believe we’re together again,” Scarlett said. “Now all we need are Scott, Jamie and Pedro. Do you have any idea where they are?”
    “Jamie is in London and Pedro is in Rome,” Matt said. He paused. “Scott is here in Antarctica.”
    “Where?” Richard was amazed to hear it. “Are you saying he’s with the World Army? Why haven’t we heard from him?”
    “He’s not with us, Richard.” Matt’s voice faltered. “He’s joined the Old Ones.”
    “No …” Scarlett couldn’t believe what she’d just heard. “That can’t be true, Matt. He’d never do that.”
    “He’s with them now, Scarlett. Just two kilometres away on the other side of Oblivion. I know you don’t want to hear it – but it’s true. He decided to join them when he was in Italy and they flew him here.”
    “But that means we can’t win!” Scarlett looked horrified. “There have to be five of us.”
    Matt sighed. “I know. But you have to understand. Scott has been through a lot and he doesn’t really know what he’s doing. At least he’s here, close to us. He could still change his mind.”
    “Can we reach him?”
    “Not yet.”
    “If only Jamie was here,” Richard said. “He was closer to Scott than any of us.” He turned to Matt. “Where have you been? What were you doing in Brazil?” He nodded at Lohan. “I’m glad you were there to look after him.”
    “I’d never have got out without him,” Matt said and Lohan cast his eyes down, remembering how he had behaved.
    “I want to hear everything,” Richard said. “When I came out of that door in Giza and found that you weren’t with me…” His voice trailed away. “I thought I’d never see you again,” he said.
    “We’ll have time for that later,” Matt said. “But first of all I need to know more about what’s happening here. Tell me about the commander. You said you were worried about him…”
    “David Cain!” Richard shook his head. “I suppose we’re lucky to have him. He’s a good man – but the trouble is, he insists on doing things his own way. I don’t know if you saw when you came in, but we’ve got quite a few naval vessels. There’s an Argentinian destroyer, the Pintada . Then there’s the Duc d’Orléans , which is a French surveillance frigate and not much use. There’s even a British submarine, armed with Polaris missiles. Funnily enough, they’re the most stand-offish. They won’t have anything to do with Scarlett or me.
    “Cain came off the US Pole Star , like he told you. It’s a Nimitz-class supercarrier. But it’s difficult for him. You have to remember that all these people are basically deserters. They’ve set off on their own to fight the Old Ones. Cain was given the all-clear by Senator Trelawny. Remember him?”
    Trelawny was the American politician who had helped Scott and Jamie when they were on the run and who had almost been assassinated in the town of Auburn, California. He had lost the race to become president but he had been helping the Nexus ever since.
    “The Nexus have been busy,” Richard went on. “Nobody could rely on government any more. Most of the politicians are either working for the Old Ones or too busy looking out for themselves. But the Nexus have been there with money, supplies, communications. A big part of this army is only here because of them.”
    “What’s Cain planning?” Matt asked.
    “He was one of the first to arrive and he more or less appointed himself leader of the entire World Army. Maybe it’s no bad thing. He’s decent enough. But you have to watch out for him. I saw his face when you walked in and I don’t think he’s exactly overjoyed you’re here. Anyway, he’s already decided. He’s going to attack the fortress. He was drawing up the plans when you arrived. A military bombardment followed by a full-on assault.”
    “That won’t work.”
    “I’m sure you’re right. I’ve already said the same. But Commander Cain has no idea what he’s up against. He’s been to military