by Avera, Drew
It found nothing, but still I remembered them.
“Dr. Thesian, could you do a mental scan for me?”
“Yes, sir, I have it pulled up on the screen to your left.” The voice was nasally and distant. I felt the rustling movement in front of me as Agent Eros looked at the results.
“I don’t see any indication in his brain activity that is cause for concern. Do you, Dr. Thesian?”
A light clapping of footsteps emerged closer to us before he answered. “No, sir, I do not.”
“Then perhaps we should continue to monitor him for another day or so before we resume training,” Eros said as he turned away. “There is a very important assignment that requires his participation. It will be the last step in ensuring his mind completely belongs to The Agency.”
“Of course, sir,” the doctor replied.
“Please inform me if anything arises. I will return in the morning.”
With those words Agent Eros left me to endure another cycle of the programming, but I did not fear it. I no longer feared any of it.
Chapter 6
The needles and other electrodes departed my body with the sound of mechanical whirling. They had been there so long I thought they would remain a part of me forever. What should have been relief was regret. Despite the triggered arsenal of pain they represented, I couldn't help but feel a longing for them, for the stability in life they promised.
"It's time you step from the shadows and perform your final test," Agent Eros said.
"I don't know if now’s a good time, sir. He is weak just coming out of programming. I recommend at least a week of recovery before assigning him to anything," the doctor spoke behind Eros' back, trying to persuade him against his plan.
I watched Agent Eros grab the doctor by the throat with his left hand, and through barely open eyes I watched the blue laser of Eros' gauntlet illuminate the pale face of a fearful man. "I don't need permission from you. The Agency assigns as it sees fit, and as an authority on that matter I suggest that you shut your damn mouth about it. Do you understand?"
The doctor shook his head yes as he gasped for air.
All I wanted now was peaceful sleep, but I knew I was in for a rude awakening. Agent Eros had mentioned an assignment and I knew it would be a test.
"What is my assignment, sir?" The words sounded weak as if they were spoken by a frail, old man.
Eros grabbed my arm to help support me as he pulled me from the contraption where the programming had occurred. "Your briefing will take place in the morning. For now I need you to eat solid food and rest. If you can't walk on your own power then you will be of no use to us."
I couldn't tell if his words were those of compassion or if they were a threat of sorts. I struggled with defining the man in terms of friend or foe. I could not disassociate him from certain negative thoughts, and each time I did I was afraid of what ailment I would suffer due to the programming.
I took a few weak steps as he supported my weight. My bare feet touched the cold floor of the room and Dr. Thesian pulled away from me as if I had something contagious.
"Eat slow, young man. It's been a while since your stomach has encountered food and you may feel the urge to vomit," he said before turning his attention to Agent Eros. "Here are a few bottles of Serum. These will help dull his nerves and make him more alert."
Eros grabbed the bottles from the doctor and led me away without saying a word. We left the dark room behind and entered a bright corridor lined with doors on all sides. Even in my stupor I knew other prospects were behind those doors experiencing the same torment as I had for however long. Was it weeks, months, years? I had no idea of knowing, but I already felt my desire to care drift away without a second thought. The future was ahead of me in all of its wicked glory.
Chapter 7
“I take it you understand the time critical nature of this mission?” Agent Eros asked for the second time.
“Yes, sir, I do.” I answered again, this time making direct eye contact with him. I thought for a moment I detected a sense of compassion in his dark eyes. For the first time since meeting him I noticed the light scar that ran along the hairline on his forehead. I could tell that he tried to cover it up, but it was not easily hidden.
“Failure is not an option. You have more at stake than merely passing your final test and becoming a Policeman in The Agency. Lives are at stake, including your family. The Agency does not take kindly to loose ends.” He stepped away from me and looked out over the city of Archea. The sun was ready to set in the reddish sky, with hues of orange and purple scattering about the landscape. In the distance I could see the reflective material that made up the artificial atmosphere, the electro-magnetic field generated by carbon fiber netting and plates. I had never noticed them in this kind of detail before.
“I understand perfectly.”
“I know you do.” His shoulders hunched a bit as I watched him from behind, glaring out the window. Through the reflection I could see that his eyes were closed.
“Are you all right, sir?” I asked, stirring him from his thoughts.
He turned to face me once more. “Of course; I think the Serum is wearing off is all. How about you, do you feel rested enough to carry out this mission?”
“I do.”
He nodded. “Very well, I will leave you to prepare yourself for the task. A guard will be sent to collect you shortly.” Agent Eros walked towards the door of my new living quarters and placed a heavy hand on the handle. The plain white room was a stark contrast to the black uniform of the Policeman. The only shining surface on his body was his gauntlet, clutched to his right forearm, a formidable weapon at his side.
“Yes, sir, I will be ready.”
He opened the door and left me to my thoughts. Alone I felt more alive, more at ease. I reflected on my mission and wondered if I could carry out what needed to be done. My training only desensitized me to death, but not to the act of killing. For this I was anxious. I hoped I could do what needed to be done, if not for myself, then at least for my family. With that thought, my fears subsided. The programming removed the thoughts that distracted me from my mission and set me at ease. Perhaps without the doom and gloom of a conscience I could carry out anything The Agency warranted.
Chapter 8
The guard dropped me in the center of downtown Archea. I looked around my hometown and took in the rust colored environment with new eyes. Even the salty smell of the sea seemed different. I didn't know if it was due to the programming or just a long tenure away from it.
I pushed those thoughts aside as I stepped out into the bustling streets filled with men and women going to and fro. Most avoided eye contact with me; some even stepped around me with a wide berth. A vague memory of fear was but a fleeting glimpse at why.
Every citizen feared the Policemen. We were the architects of vengeance. We were the bastards of society, unloved and removed from everything human.
I carried myself through the streets like a machine. I was moving on autopilot. Every sensor in my mind responded to my surroundings until I found myself standing in front of a skyscraper. I read the names etched into the glass doors to confirm that I was in the right place.
"Gilbreck and White," read the frosted glass in a bold font. The men who owned the business were corporate heads in the technology field. There was some speculation that Gilbreck's family had been one of the earliest colonists on Mars, but that was pure speculation. Either way, the family was among the wealthiest and the White family shared in similar "interest", catapulting them to the upper one percent.
I opened the door and made my way for the elevator. The posh lobby glowed in natural light provided by a series of skylights and meticulously placed mirrors. It almost felt as if I stepped onto the sun once I reached the center.
I pressed the elevator button and was instantly met with the opening of doors. I stepped into the spacious cell and waited for it to lift me to the condominium suite as detailed in my assignment. I looke
d blankly at my reflection in the doors and was startled by the fact that I did not recognize myself. I looked like I was half the size as I was at recruitment and my eyes looked hollow. Mesmerized, I stared for a long while until my gaze was interrupted by the opening doors and chime of a bell.
I shook my head and stepped into a foyer covered in marble and brass. It was elegant yet sterile and I felt a tinge of repulsion by it, though I had no idea where the feeling came from. I stepped absently to the door and rang the doorbell. I noticed an all too familiar movement as I rocked back and forth on my heels and instantly regretted the association. I had been here before, but I couldn't remember why. There was elation in my heart reprimanded by my mind. A shooting pain dug into my brain behind my eyes, reminding me why I had to break free from the past.
My heartbeat began to pulse harder, deeper, threatening to erupt as my memories retaliated against the programming. I was distraught. I was afraid. I was in pain.
And then the door opened.
Chapter 9
“Gentry?” she asked with a puzzled look on her face. Her belly was bigger now as she carried her child and I could see the elation in her eyes when she looked at me. Every breath escaping my lungs threatened her existence and I stepped back from her instinctively.
“Is everything all right? You’re starting to worry me.” She said as she placed her hand on my arm.
I jumped back more and looked up at her; the programming caused my mind to jumble and my vision became blurry. I couldn’t focus on her without inflicting massive amounts of pain on myself, but I knew she was real and the mission to terminate loomed hazardously above us.
“Stay away!” I cried out between pinches in my head. It felt as if there was a mechanism floating around in my head causing hell to rage inside of me.
“I don’t understand,” she started to say as she stepped back inside, holding the door with two delicate hands. Her baby bump stared at me, judged me for what I was sent to do. I felt remorse, but most of all I felt pain.
“The Agency sent me,” I whispered through gritted teeth. “It’s about the Pontiff position offered to your husband Clendon. The Syndicate will not be ignored, and I was sent to deliver a message.” I struggled to force the words out, knowing exactly what that message was.
A look of terror crossed Ambree’s face and I felt a different kind of pain. “He told me that it was handled; that the price had already been paid.”
I looked up at her pitifully and could see tears streaming down her face. “It’s never enough.”
I could see the gears turning in her mind as she assessed the situation. My own thoughts fluttered with ideas, which were instantly treated as a threat to The Syndicate and pain fired into my neural receptors. I grimaced as I tried to look her in the eye, hoping to ward her off and provoke her to flee. I wanted nothing more than to save my sister, to not condemn her to a fate dictated by The Syndicate.
Ambree fell to her knees and approached my hunched form in the foyer. I could feel her hands placed along my back as I tried to shake the emotions from my mind, I was weak when she needed me to be strong. I was ashamed.
“Look at me, Gentry,” she said softly. My eyes met hers and I could see her swallow back the knot in her throat. “I need you to do something for me.”
I cringed as the programming mottled the mess in my mind and confused me even more. I had a mission, it came first, I thought to myself before my emotionally charged thoughts consumed them. “I don’t know if I can,” I said.
“You must.”
“Don’t tell me what I must do!” I screamed, both from fear and the mangled torrent of pain coursing through my body.
“I’m afraid, my sweet brother. Clendon must do as The Syndicate declares or else our family will lose everything.”
“Don’t you get it?” I seethed. “That’s why I’m here; they want him to lose you!”
I felt a gentle stroke of her hand along my shoulders and then a tender hug. Her body felt warm, it was the first time I had experienced human contact in months and I relished in what felt like love. Pain interrupted it.
“Do what you came here to do, Gentry.”
I shuddered. “I don’t want to lose you,” I whimpered.
“It’s too late for that, brother. The Syndicate has seen to that. Please, don’t let the same fate befall my husband.”
I scoffed. “How can you think like that? Do you not understand what my being here means?” I wanted to cry at her unselfishness.
She took my right hand and held it in her own. “I do understand which is why you must do what you came here for.” The blue laser illuminated on my gauntlet and the diffuser directed the beam onto her chest. I could feel a deep throbbing pain in my chest as she spoke one last time. “I love you, Gentry.”
And with those words, she breathed her last.
Chapter 10
I watched the inauguration of Pontiff Clendon White from the back of the great hall. The palace was larger than the penthouse where he once resided with my sister Ambree, but I could see the sorrow in his eyes, even from fifty yards away. I wished I could regret what happened, but somewhere in the deep crevices of my mind my ability to do so was repressed.
“Security check, Gentry,” boomed the voice of Agent Von Dern in my earpiece.
I responded, “Everything is good to go, sir.”
The channel went, and once again I was left in the static noise of the inaugural party, no more voices in my head or stray thoughts in my mind. I just existed now. It was a torrential peace, something indescribable, almost like being alone for too long. I looked about the room and realized in my daze I had lost track of my former brother-in-law. I moved my head from left to right and tried to find him amongst the crowd. That was when I felt the hand on my shoulder, so I turned.
“I’m surprised to see you here.” Pontiff White’s voice was softer than I imagined it would be. I knew he must hate me for what I had done, but there was something else behind his mannerisms keeping him from unleashing that hatred, regardless of how much I deserved it.
“I’m part of the security detail, sir. I’m here for your protection.” I said autonomously.
“Protection from what exactly, Agent Gentry?” he asked. “The only thing I had to live for was taken from me.”
I felt the smallest amount of guilt in my mind before it was swept away. “You are the Pontiff now, sir. You live for the well-being of the people. You are a representative of our government, of The Syndicate.”
“I stand corrected then,” Pontiff White said. I could see his eyes moving from side to side as if he were looking for prying ears. “Would you step outside with me?”
“Do you think that’s wise? You are well protected here, inside.”
He looked at me with a questioning look. “I need the fresh air,” he replied.
Together we stepped out onto a balcony overlooking the town square. Archea was much larger than a town, but the name of the area stuck nonetheless. The metropolis ascended towards the sky like arms eternally reaching for a god. The salty smell of the sea consumed the air around us and it was all too familiar, yet distant at the same time.
“Tell me why I shouldn’t hate you,” Pontiff White said, his hands gripping the railing for support. “Please, before my heart explodes in rage.”
I looked at him; the pity on his face grew more intense. “I don’t know what you want me to say. It was an assignment; I had no choice. If you choose to hate me then that is your right.”
“When did you grow so damned cold-hearted?” he asked with tears forming in his eyes.
I looked at him and yearned for some kind of tangible emotion to show him I was not a monster. My actions were contrary to the person I once was, but the programming stripped all of it away. I pulled an envelope from my jacket pocket and handed it to him. “When you are alone, open this. I must go.” I turned to walk away.
“I don’t think I can live without her,” he said, remorse pouring from his throat.
“Then live for something else,” I said. “Open it when you’re alone.” And with those words I walked away.
Epilogue
I removed the envelope from the pocket of my robe as I sat in the desk chair of my newly appointed office. Everything was illuminated in a pale blue glow from the computer system. I moved my finger along one of the holographic screens to bring up the intensity of the lighting in the room and sat back in the chair. My new position as Pontiff was not without perks, but the costs of that position would never make it worthwhile.
I ran a blade through the glued flap that sealed the correspondence and emptied out the contents onto the desk. There were two items folded together. I picked up the photograph first and found that it was a picture of Ambree just before we were married. It had only been two years, but it now felt so much longer given recent events. I stared at the picture for a long while and willed myself to remember a happier time, one not wrought with pain and misery.
I could remember her laugh, her smile, the smell of her hair when she got out of the shower. Every piece of my memory was intact, which made it hurt all the more. I placed the photograph on the desk and picked up the handwritten letter that Gentry had given to me. My former brother-in-law had been loved intensely by my wife; her brother could do no wrong in her eyes. It was more than unfortunate that I did not revere him the same way she once had.
I wondered if she would still think of him in such a way if she was still alive and it was me sleeping eternally.
I pushed the thought from my mind and unfolded the letter. I began reading it aloud, but soon my voice ceased as I continued.