The Hallucigenia Project

by Darren Kasenkow

  “Here we go then.”

  John slammed his elbow into the thin glass and lifted the lever. Fresh sirens screamed to life as red lights began to flash along the ceiling, the ember like glow igniting their feet as they ran to the stairwell and burst through the door. The air was musty and the concrete steps unforgiving as they bound down to the ground level with hearts racing. From up above they could hear emergency doors beginning to slam and frantic voices growing louder and louder.

  He kicked open the exit and skidded onto the ground floor tiles. Just as he had predicted the chaos had ramped up another level. There were people everywhere, darting in all directions with desperation contorting their faces while they wondered what the hell was going on. These were the guests who had chosen the safety of the hotel over the risk of being caught outside by another freak of nature regardless of the evacuation, and now that fragile illusion of safety was being pulled from under them.

  The chaos was a welcome sight though. Nobody gave them a second glance as they kept close and pushed their way into the lobby and through the confused crowd, and as they rushed past the entrance doors no tip was required.

  A thick wall of humidity slammed into them as the sound of blaring horns and constant calls cut through the air. Vanessa edged her way to the front and steered them to the car, now marked with thick gouges running along the panels where panic had overcome the ability to steer. Even with all that had happened, and was happening, Vanessa still felt a lurch in her stomach at the defacing of such a beautiful machine.

  “I sure hope this baby’s got insurance,” she joked.

  John and Candice jumped into the back seat as Vanessa grabbed the wheel. Wedged between a bus and a station wagon, getting out was going to need some serious finesse. Daring to feel confident that the hotel would soon be behind them John nestled Bobbie by his feet and leaned across to Candice, passion and adrenaline finding her lips as the sweet scent of her sweat rushed his senses. The kiss wasn’t just glorious but was testament that they’d survived the ambush. Judging by the way she leaned into his body, she was in full agreement.

  Vanessa, meanwhile, was cursed under her breath as she struggled to wrangle the car from its entrapment with mere inches to play with. For what would be the fourth time she shifted back into reverse and checked her mirrors.

  “Um, anyone wanna tell me who this crazy cat is heading our way?” she asked in surprise.

  John reluctantly broke away from his moment of bliss and peered back over his shoulder. At first he saw only the blur of people bumping into each other with civility out the window, but his fingers began to dig into the leather of the seats when Vanessa’s observation became clear.

  Walking slowly and assuredly with little care for the chaos surrounding him, a tall man stared back at the them. His mirrored sunglasses glistened with frantic reflections, while either side of him sinister looking associates in black uniforms pushed aside anyone in the way. There was no doubt about it, this didn’t look good.

  “Who the fuck wears a danky disco cape in the middle of the god damn day?” Vanessa hissed.

  “That’s a good question,” John agreed, “but now would be the perfect time to get us the hell outta here.”

  “It just got worse,” Candice stammered, pointing in front of the car where a small army of cops were determined to break through the crowd.

  Crack!

  Fragments of glass bounced off the leather as a bullet tore through the back window and shot through the windscreen. John shoved Candice down against the seat and looked back through the fresh hole. The man in the silver jacket was getting closer as his associates readied for another pull of the trigger.

  “Don’t hold back!” he yelled to Vanessa as he shielded his eyes and began blasting through the window, sending glass to cascade like storm whipped snow crystals.

  Vanessa muttered something that was drowned by the deafening noise of the gun and slammed her foot down onto the pedal, forcing the car back with a lurch and a violent crunch of metal on metal. Still she kept her foot down and the engine began to scream and smoke erupted from the tires as they pushed against the station wagon. A round of bullets pinged against the metal, drawing a scream from Candice as the leather tore open above her head. In desperation John ducked down against the seat and continued to fire blindly, scrambling in his pocket for a fresh clip that would be needed any second.

  The cops ducked and weaved into strategic positions as the crowd screamed and dropped to the ground. The engine was almost at breaking point now and the tires were ready to blow, but the station wagon was beginning to groan against the force.

  “Hold on!” Vanessa yelled.

  With sweat drenched fingers she forced the shifter into drive. John dropped his arm and struggled to load another clip as the car whined and jumped forward, crunching into the rear of the bus before tearing free and skidding out onto the driveway.

  Straight ahead the hotel traffic wasn’t moving, and so with desperate concentration Vanessa floored the accelerator with as much force as she could muster and steered her way up onto the gutter and straight through the perfectly manicured garden beds that separated the hotel from the main road. Lush green branches slapped across the steel as the car bounced and fish tailed its way across the undulating surface, but just as the frame felt ready to shake apart they launched out onto the road with a screech of the tires and the sound of shattering glass.

  “How you both doing back there?” she asked with a hand wiping the sweat from her face.

  “Still breathing,” John answered as he marvelled at the bullet holes that scarred the interior.

  Candice reached out to wipe something from John’s cheek. “You’re bleeding,” she said.

  “My face got in the way of the glass,” he said dryly.

  Horns blared left and right as Vanessa forced her way into any tiny gap in the traffic that would put the hotel further behind. Up ahead, the city skyline was marred with several buildings engulfed in swirling flames and thick black smoke that bled into false storm clouds. Like birds searching for a nest several helicopters hovered by the edge of the heat, unable to do anything for the moment but watch.

  She checked her mirrors. If there was anybody on their tail she couldn’t see them, but with the traffic now bumper to bumper and steadily slowing down it wouldn’t matter too much. It wasn’t going to be hard to spot them, that much was certain. By now the car looked as though some giant machine had chewed it up and spit it out, and the sudden red flashing engine light was the first sign of blood.

  “This nightmare just keeps getting better and better,” she said.

  John ensured his gun was loaded with a fresh clip and lifted Bobbie onto his lap. “I don’t wanna state the obvious but the way this car looks we might was well have a target painted on the roof. If you’ve got somewhere to go, I hope to hell it’s close.”

  “Trust me,” Vanessa replied, “I don’t wanne be in this car any more than you do.”

  “Oh I trust you, believe me.”

  “I know.”

  A low flying jet shook the sky overhead as hot winds whipped in through the shattered windows. For now the traffic was still moving, bringing with it a tiny opportunity to breathe a little.

  “God knows who the guy with the silver jacket was,” Candice said with red hair flying in all directions, “but I have a feeling he wanted this.” She opened her palm to reveal a blood filled vial with a purple cap. “If you can get me to Hendrix there’s a chance of finding out why.”

  John looked into her eyes and managed a weak smile. “First priority is getting us somewhere safe, and between fireballs in the sky, pissed off cops, federal agents and a psycho with bad fashion sense, that might not be so easy.”

  “Maybe there’s a reason it’s not easy, and maybe, just maybe, there’s something deeper at play here and we’re a part of it.”

  “Are you saying the Hallucigenia Project isn’t complicated enough? We’re sitting in a car with busted windows a
nd bullet holes.”

  “What I’m trying to say is…” Candice trailed off, choosing her words carefully. “This blood, it might be more important to the project than we know, and maybe getting it to Hendrix is worth heading for the fire.”

  “If we can get to wherever Vanessa is headed, I promise we’ll work out a way to reach Hendrix. As for heading into the fire, something tells me we’re already well on the way.”

  He leaned between the seats and stared out through the bullet hole ridden windscreen. Against all odds they had made it into the concrete and glass embrace of the inner city. There was no evidence of destruction to be seen at the moment, though emergency vehicles wrestled in the choking traffic as swarms of people huddled along the edges of the road and gawked at the black smoke slowly covering the lid of the city.

  Vanessa made a sharp left and whistled through her teeth at the sudden gridlock. The red of the engine light continued to flash and the temperature gauge was beginning to climb. Unless they could get some air moving through the grill the engine would cook.

  Her eyes searched desperately for any sliver of space to sneak through but the pickings were grim. The only feasible option was the sidewalk, but with crowds of people as far as she could see it would be a bad idea indeed.

  “I don’t wanna be the one to crash our party,” she relayed, “but if this engine gets much hotter we’re gonna be shit outta luck.”

  John shook his head at another bad roll of the dice. “Great, just what we need.”

  “With this sort of crowd we should be safe for now at least,” Candice added.

  “Here’s hoping,” he replied.

  As the words left his mouth a new sound crept into the chaotic ambience of the cityscape. It was subtle at first, but seconds later there was no mistaking the whump of spinning blades that grew louder and louder. With a sense of dread he leaned out of the busted window and looked skyward between the towering buildings, and in an instant knew his dread was warranted. The helicopter was directly above them, swaying slightly in the tunnel like winds and most certainly coming down.

  “Out of the car now!” he yelled as he scooped up Bobbie with one hand and the gun with the other.

  Candice kicked open the door and stumbled into the parting crowd now shielding their eyes from the down draft. John slid across and was right behind her, forcing his way onto the sidewalk and looking up in time to see a menacing tube of metal sliding into position. Oh fuck, he thought while staring back into the car to see Vanessa unable to open her door.

  “Get outta there!” he screamed at the top of his lungs, rushing to the passenger door.

  Vanessa shot him a worried glance then narrowed her eyes. She leaned back against the seat, lifted her legs and, with a piercing grunt, kicked out and shattered what was left of the windscreen with a cascade of sparkling glass.

  John wedged the gun beneath Bobbie and reached out as Vanessa crawled onto the engine, grabbing her hand and sliding her weight across the metal. A whooshing sound broke through the air, electrifying his senses and compressing time. With all the strength he had he pulled her onto the road, shoved her into the crowd and dove onto Candice so together they crashed onto the ground.

  The rocket broke through the roof of the car a millisecond before detonation. Orange red flames erupted through the windows only to be torn apart by the wind of the spinning blades as the body of the car groaned and lifted from the ground. Candice cried out and Vanessa cursed as a horrible heat slammed against them, stealing their breath and sending scores of the crowd to the ground around them like collapsing mannequins.

  John covered them both as best he could while struggling to stop a panicked Bobbie from breaking free. When the shock of the heat blast subsided he scrambled to his feet and felt his jaw drop at the sight of what was left of the flame filled car.

  “Follow me!” Vanessa insisted through gulps of air tinged with acrid smoke.

  Candice pushed her way up and grabbed John’s hand. Together they rushed behind Vanessa as she dodged, shoved and forced her way through the stunned and bleeding crowd that was fleeing in all directions. Above them the bird’s engine hissed and whined as it struggled against the concentrated shockwave and attempted to follow them. With winds whipping between the buildings it wasn’t going to be easy, and the job became even harder as they sprinted across the traffic locked road and down a narrow, garbage strewn alley.

  When they reached another bustling city street John raised a hand. “Give me a second,” he panted while gently passing Bobbie to Candice. As fast as he could John tore off his shirt, tied a loose knot to create a sling and slipped it over his neck. Candice tucked Bobbie into the makeshift cradle and they were ready to hit the street.

  “Here we go,” Vanessa announced.

  Onto the crowded sidewalk they ran. Up ahead an impact had blasted a hole in the road, the crater littered with wrecked cars and spot fires. When they were almost close enough to peer into the depths Vanessa darted across the street to lead them down yet another alley. Shadows engulfed them as the sound of the whirring bird called out in the distance. Even with the danger of flying between city buildings it seemed they had no intention of giving up.

  Running now on pure adrenaline they rushed down street after street, shoving people out of their way while scanning the surroundings for looming threats like the hunted prey they were. Vanessa charged down a side street where a temporary medical centre had been erected, and when she reached the other end she leaned down to catch her breath.

  “We made it,” she barely stammered.

  John stopped beside her and looked across the road where a familiar battered sign struggled in the sun. Inner Strength Gym And Fitness. Considering the predicament they were in he couldn’t be happier to return to the ring, and with lungs burning they rushed across to the hopeful sanctuary.

  As soon as they stepped through the old door Vanessa locked it down with a rusty steel bar and led the charge up the rickety stairs. The air was still and musty, with the thick walls softening the outside sounds well enough that beating hearts and struggling lungs was all they could hear for the journey up.

  “I’ve never been so happy to see a gym,” Candice gasped between breaths.

  Together they reached the top of the stairs. John and Candice staggered across the floor to collapse onto the edge of the boxing ring as Vanessa ran towards a startled Sammy, who was seated on a fold out chair in front of an old television set that seemed to constantly flicker. Worry was set deep in his blue eyes and the muscles along his face appeared tired.

  “Jesus Christ Sammy am I glad to see you,” Vanessa said as she fell to her knees to give her lungs some relief.

  “Nessy,” Sam replied softly, “the city gone crazy so what you doing here?”

  “You’re not happy to see me?”

  “Girl, you know I’m always happy to see you.” He reached out for her hands and squeezed them tight. “Judging by the look on your face though you ain’t here to work the bag.”

  “No,” she sighed, “I’m not.”

  Sammy looked across the room with the lift of an eyebrow. “I guess trouble really does come in threes.”

  Vanessa squeezed her eyes closed for a few seconds to hold back unwanted tears. “I wish I could explain what’s going on, really I do, but I wouldn’t even know where to start. As for trouble, we’re in it deep enough to drown.”

  Back on the canvass, John held Candice and gazed between the tattered newspapers pasted to the small windows on the far wall. There was little to see but the blurred fragments of the buildings on the opposite side of the street, and so he focussed instead on the dust laced floor. He knew they were safe for the moment but staying there in the gym would only solve their problems temporarily. One way or the other they needed a plan, and the sooner the better.

  The sound of the old television set caught his attention. He couldn’t quite make out what was being said but that wasn’t what interested him. What interested him was the fact tha
t something was still being broadcast, and that simple observation reminded him of the satellite phone wedged in his pocket.

  “Time to see if this thing works,” he said, wiping the sweat from his hands before tapping the only contact on the screen.

  A familiar ringing tone bounced from the small speaker. He couldn’t help but squeeze the phone in an attempt to conjure a voice on the other end. Against all odds, it seemed to work.

  “Judging by the number,” Klementina’s voice crackled, “this better be who I think it is.”

  “The one and only,” John said with relief, “but I’m not calling to say hello.”

  Knowing they were running out of time with every second he didn’t give her a chance to respond, instead giving her a frantic rundown of everything that had happened since arriving back at the hotel. When he told her that Candice was now with him and had a vial of blood for Hendrix, Klementina was quick to cut him off.

  “Slow down for a second John, this is important. What exactly has the doctor got?”

  “Like I said, she’s got a vial of blood from the lab that she thinks is pretty damn important and needs to get it to Hendrix.”

  “Jesus…” The line went quiet for several seconds. “Okay, tell me where you are and we’ll get you out of there.”

  “We’re holed up in a gym deep in the city. The streets are total chaos and there’s a chopper unit out there ready to send us into the afterlife. If you’ve got any ideas, I’m all ears.”

  “Can you get up to the roof?”

  “Hang on.” John lowered the phone and called out to Vanessa. “Have we got access to the roof from here?”

  “Afraid not,” Sammy responded with a shake of his head. “They blocked access years ago. Only one way in or out of this place, and them stairs is it.”

  “Shit.” He brought the phone back up to his ear. “That’s a negative on the roof. We’re on the first floor with nowhere else to go but back down, and that’s not really an option.”

  “Okay I want you to listen carefully. Stay right where you are and do whatever it takes to keep the wolves at bay. I’m going to get you out of there but it’s going to take a few minutes. Now tell me the name of the gym and then keep the phone close.”