The Dark Descent

by William Oday

  2. It was time to kill General Curtis. A trial would be pointless. He would buy or bully his way to freedom. But taking such extralegal action would go against every law and convention our community held dear.

  The group chose #1 and this is what happened next…

  40

  The sharp headache came first. The dull thinking came next. The sheen of sweat coating my skin arrived soon after. A few hours had passed and the air was noticeably changing for the worse. It wasn’t debilitating.

  Yet.

  Each of us had retreated into the silence of our minds. The simple task of breathing was the only focus. And it was getting increasingly difficult to do.

  I drew in a slow breath, noticed how it filled my lungs yet didn’t quite satisfy, and then let it out.

  From near the top of the pile of rubble leading to the rest of the residence level, a miniature trail of dirt crumbled down. It must’ve been settling into its natural angle of repose.

  Then another rivulet of debris tumbled down. It was too steady to be random. A few seconds later, a tiny pink nose with two long curved teeth poked through the dirt. The nose twitched as it sampled the air.

  Another few seconds and a black head poked through. Its beady eyes surveyed each of us in turn.

  “A rat!” Martinez said with disgust tinged with fear. She scooted away to the opposite wall of rubble—the one blocking the way to the marketplace.

  It crawled out and stopped, regarding us with curiosity. Like it was wondering why we were here. As if our being here was as much our choice as its being here was its choice. And our choice made no sense.

  “Vile creature,” Martinez said. “If it comes near me, I’m going to stomp it.”

  “What’s your problem with rats?” Crypto said.

  “I don’t have a pinkie toe on my left foot because of a rat. That’s my problem with rats!”

  Crypto and I looked at her like she was crazy. Maybe the air was getting to her faster than us.

  The rat chittered like it was trying to tell us something.

  Martinez flinched like the message was that it was about to kill us and there was nothing we could do to stop it.

  I’d seen plenty of strange things of late. But this woman who I’d come to regard as a fearless warrior being scared of a rat was at the top of the list.

  “What are you talking about?” I asked.

  “It happened when I was a baby. I was in a crib in a room by myself. A mangy rat crawled in and bit off my left pinkie toe. It took a chunk out of my leg too before my mother heard my cries and returned.”

  “So, you only have four toes on your left foot?” Crypto asked.

  Martinez nodded, not letting her eyes stray.

  He grimaced with disgust. “And people think I’m a deformed cripple. You just hide it better.”

  Martinez shot him a scowl. “I’m not a cripple. I can walk just fine.”

  Crypto snorted. “I meant emotionally, not physically. I mean, you’re terrified of rats from something that happened before you could even remember anything.”

  “I’m not terrified of it!”

  The rat shook like a wet dog and dirt went flying.

  Martinez sucked in a breath and recoiled at the sudden movement.

  Crypto doubled over laughing, until Martinez punched him in the shoulder so hard he fell over. “Owww!” he said as he lay on his side, rubbing the spot.

  “Cut it out! Both of you!” I said. It was like keeping two children from pestering each other.

  I glanced back to the rat and noticed something familiar.

  A jet black body with a white patch of scraggly fur on top of its head.

  Einstein!

  “That’s Einstein! One of Kat’s rats!”

  It sounded strange when it came out like that.

  Einstein scurried around and disappeared into the tiny tunnel. A few seconds later, he backed out pulling something along with it.

  A small tube.

  I heard the whooshing air a second later.

  He raced down the pile and leaped on top of my leg. He stoop up on his haunches, pawed at the air and squeaked as if to explain everything.

  I stroked the little guy’s chest. “I think he’s telling us we are officially rescued. I think he dragged in an air tube.”

  Crypto was already scrambling up the pile. He grabbed the tube and felt the end. He sniffed it, held against his palm and then sucked in a breath. A few more breaths and he nodded with a broad smile. “It’s fresh air!”

  We took turns with the tube and soon after heard the rumbling sounds of rescue as the blockage was cleared.

  The gamble to wait for help had paid off!

  Another couple of hours and a dirt-covered face broke through the rubble. “Look who we have here,” a familiar voice said. “Mr. Scout, buried alive rain check does not work on Kat.”

  Einstein squeaked and raced up the pile to her.

  She kissed him. “That’s a good boy. The hero deserves tasty reward for dinner tonight.”

  “Kat!” I said, still too surprised to say anything more.

  “Yes, Mr. Scout. Sit tight, everyone. We’ll have you out in few minutes.” She disappeared and the sounds of excavation resumed.

  More than a few minutes later, we got out and a team of rescuers plied us with water and wet rags to clean off with. A nurse checked each of us in turn.

  Kat reappeared carrying a steaming pot with towels covering the handles. She eased a bag off her shoulder and dug out bowls and spoons and soon we were slurping down a scalding savory broth as fast as our burned tongues could manage.

  Kat pulled out a clear bottle of something that promised to burn hotter than the soup. Martinez and I had one drink each and passed it on. Crypto guzzled more than a few drinks before Kat snatched it out of his hands. “Easy. You don’t want to die right after living through such a thing.”

  Crypto’s lips pressed into a tight line, but he nodded and returned to his soup.

  After I’d eaten enough to feel like my brain and body worked again, I motioned for Kat to come closer so the rescue workers hurrying back and forth wouldn’t hear. “What happened after General Curtis collapsed the tunnel?”

  “He and Grays returned to the elevators and departed. We’ve heard that Grays have taken control of Water and Power level and Farms level. ”

  “Are the elevators still operational?”

  She shook her head. “No. The service elevators aren’t working either. Not for lower levels, at least. I don’t know about higher up.”

  I needed to get to the upper levels. Any chance of heading off this growing conflict required it.

  But how?

  If there was no way to get to the upper levels, there would be no way to get to General Curtis.

  I put the bowl to my mouth and slurped up the last of the soup before setting it aside.

  Martinez and Crypto were still working on theirs.

  I said out loud what each of us were thinking. “With General Curtis controlling movement between the levels, we’re going to have a difficult time fighting back.”

  Crypto swiped his arm across his mouth. “He doesn’t control every route between the levels.”

  “What do you mean?” I asked.

  Crypto leveled a cold look at Kat as he held a hand up. “Pass me that rotgut and I’ll tell you a story.”

  41

  Crypto knocked back a shockingly large amount of Kat’s booze before stopping for a breath. His face turned red and it looked like he was about to explode. His mouth opened and a huge burp blasted out. The sound echoed down the corridor. The fumes nearly singed my nose hairs. The vapors would’ve ignited if an open flame had been nearby.

  The royal burp of all burps finally petered out and he sighed with satisfaction. “Better.”

  Martinez had her hand covering her nose and mouth. “Speak for yourself.”

  He grinned. “I always do.”

  Not this again. I cut in before they resumed their
feud. “Tell me your story. Do you know of another way to get between the levels?”

  Crypto nodded. “Yes.” He glanced around to ensure no one was close enough to hear. Kat was already back helping clear the tunnel. It wouldn’t be long before they got through to the people trapped in the marketplace.

  He leaned in and lowered his voice. “I’m about to reveal something that is a big reason why I am in the position that I am in. A competitive advantage, let’s call it. One that I will surrender for the good of our united cause. But before I do, I need something from you.”

  “You already drained half that bottle. What else do you need?” I asked.

  “I need your word that you owe me a favor. That when I call in said favor, you will deliver it no matter what.”

  I didn’t like the sound of that.

  “What if I say no?”

  Crypto shrugged. “Then the story goes away and we look for another solution.”

  Martinez snorted. “I knew it wouldn’t be long before your true colors shone through.”

  Crypto scowled at her. “Look, I’ll fight for the good of the cause, but I’m no martyr. I’ll never go back to the pathetic wretch I once was. Besides, I believe there can be more than one winner in this conflict. And I intend to be one of them.”

  “Fine,” I said. “You have my word.”

  He extended his hand and we shook on it.

  “There is an old forgotten stairwell that connects the original levels. What is now level four, Systems, was originally the uppermost level. What are now the three upper levels—Security, Residence One, and Administration—were built later. The emergency stairwell was long forgotten by the time they were added so it doesn’t extend to them.”

  Martinez blew out an exasperated breath. “Yeah, right. How is it that I’ve never heard of this stairwell?”

  “Dunno. My guess is that it was never used and so wasn’t maintained. It must’ve been blocked off at some point and eventually forgotten.”

  “How did you come to find out about it?” she asked with a skepticism that I shared.

  “As you may imagine, I was picked on as a child. And my diminutive size made the idea of fighting back a foolish one. I chose instead to escape. This level is riddled with hiding places if you’re small enough and determined enough to discover them. After having been bloodied on one particularly brutal occasion, I managed to escape, though with my assailants in hot pursuit. I ended up in a sector I’d never visited before. I lost them by squeezing through a loose wall panel and waiting in darkness until they gave up and left.”

  His eyes took on a far away, dreamy cast. “I sat there with my lips busted and bleeding. One eye swollen shut and my ribs aching from a number of well-placed kicks. I’d endured similar treatment before, but this particular episode had gone further than the rest. It was like they wanted to kill me simply because I was different and too weak to fight back. I think they would’ve if I hadn’t escaped.”

  His eyes focused and he turned to me. “I didn’t understand it then. I was no threat. I’d done them no wrong. But I came to understand it later. They were simply expressing a simmering rage at the hopeless conditions of their lives. And I was an easy target. As a child, I hated them, but I don’t anymore. I understand them.”

  “Must’ve been tough,” I said.

  “It was, but I survived. In part due to discovering the stairwell that day.” He refocused on me. Back in the present. Ready to apply his devious mind to our predicament. “I’ve used it to smuggle goods and even people between the levels. It’s been one of my most closely guarded secrets. And I offer it to you and this cause we find ourselves sharing.”

  So we had a way to travel between levels beyond the control of General Curtis. The question was what to do with that advantage. The levels we could access from top to bottom were Systems, Infirmary, Recreation, Farms, Residence Two, and Water and Power.

  Controlling Water and Power was an obvious choice, but Curtis had pre-empted that move. The Grays stationed there would be too much for any ragtag group of fighters that I’d be able to assemble.

  What else, then?

  The Farms level was out for the same reason. The Grays had the manpower and weapons to overwhelm any force we could muster. They’d only lost at the marketplace because they hadn’t expected resistance. That oversight would not be repeated.

  What about the Systems level?

  It contained the computer systems that controlled the elevators, security doors, each level’s climate control routines. It was the computerized brain that controlled everything.

  “Systems,” Crypto and I said at once.

  “But we won’t be able to hold it for long,” I said. “Once a coordinated response from the Grays arrives, we’ll have to retreat or be slaughtered.”

  Crypto waved the concern away like a bothersome fly. “We won’t have to hold it long. If we can get to the core mainframe, I can insert code that will give us control of the entire community from a digital access pad.”

  I nodded in agreement. “And with that kind of leverage, we can force General Curtis to surrender. He’ll be tried and convicted for his involvement in planting the bombs. We can head off a bloody rebellion and begin to bring this community back together.”

  Crypto took another drink and blew out a fiery breath. “We’ll see.”

  42

  I crouched down and stepped through the hatch. The metal step creaked and shifted beneath my weight. Being off balance and not expecting the metal to move, I stumbled forward, reaching out to catch myself on something.

  Anything.

  But encountered nothing but air.

  Crypto yanked back on my shirt as I regained my balance. “Careful there,” he said from a few steps up. He pointed his flashlight, revealing a wide central column of empty air that swallowed the light some forty feet below us. “That’s a one way ticket.”

  My stomach twisted as I stared down into the void. I edged away from the abyss and leaned back against the reassuring solidity of the rock wall. I shined my light around to take in the death trap I’d voluntarily entered.

  “The safety rails were already gone when I found it. They were probably salvaged when the new levels were built.”

  The stairwell itself was a round cylinder with smooth rock walls that appeared to have been created with a massive drill bit. Twelve feet in diameter with a spiral staircase wrapping around an empty column of air in the center. The steps three feet across and bolted into the rock in addition to being connected together on the outside edge. The empty space in the middle was twice that length and looked ready to swallow a person’s future without a second thought.

  We scooted up a few steps to make room for Martinez as she entered behind me.

  “Careful,” I said as I offered a supporting hand. “There’s a big drop a few feet in.”

  She brushed my hand aside and stepped through to join us. Scanning the vicinity with her own flashlight out, she shook her head with resignation. “I figured we were going to die sooner or later. Looks like it’ll be sooner.” She stood at the inside edge of the step and peered down into the darkness beyond the reach of her light. “How far does that go?”

  “Don’t know,” Crypto replied. “Further than I’ve ever wanted to go.”

  The step creaked and flexed downward.

  Martinez vaulted back to the outer edge along the wall.

  Crypto chuckled. “You’re heavy. I recommend staying away from the edge.”

  Martinez reached up passed me and flicked him in the head.

  “Ow! What was that for?”

  “You don’t tell a woman that she’s heavy. Didn’t your mother teach you anything?”

  Crypto shrugged. “No. She died birthing me and I grew up in a co-op. At least until I escaped for good.”

  “Sorry,” Martinez replied.

  “No need. I am who I am today because of the hardships I faced as a child. I’d be cleaning toilets or pleasuring the flesh otherwise.”


  Martinez cast a dubious glance his way.

  “Don’t believe me?”

  “I didn’t say anything.”

  “Have you ever been to the Recreation level?”

  “Yes.”

  “I’m not talking about the athletic fields or walking paths. I’m talking about the seedier side of things. Have you ever visited the Red Light sector?”

  She shook her head.

  “Didn’t think so. You’d be surprised what’s on offer there. A person of my unique stature would be in high demand.”

  “That’s messed up.”

  Crypto shrugged. “That’s life. People are curious.”

  “Can we get moving?” I asked. I hadn’t been to the Red Light sector as far as I could remember. And learning more about it wasn’t high on my list of priorities.

  Crypto nodded. “Sure thing. Stay close to the wall and watch your step. You don’t want to plant a foot through a crumbling patch of rust. If you didn’t end up taking the quick elevator down, you’d contract tetanus or some other blood disease.”

  “Thanks for the warning,” I said. “Let’s move out.”

  Crypto started up the steps, skipping from one to the next, much lighter on his feet than his stature would suggest.

  I shifted the coil of rope and rifle slung over my shoulder so both were settled and comfortable. With a last look to the yawning center, I started up after our nimble-footed guide.

  Between all three of us, the stairs creaked and groaned like ghosts disturbed from a long and peaceful slumber. The sounds echoed away in both directions, above and below.

  It didn’t take long before my heart was pounding and sweat beaded and dripped from my brow. I was beat up. Definitely not in the kind of shape to be doing this.

  I hadn’t thought to ask before, but after ten minutes of ascending steps and only passing two levels, I did now. “How much longer?”

  “Another ten or fifteen minutes. The levels are spaced around fifty feet apart.”