Chosen Different (Book 1)

by Kozinn, Nat

  As I approach the doorway where I heard Gary's voice, I make out another speaker. It's female. Sarah? Thinking of her brings up all sorts of confusing emotions and memories of Becky. I turn those off. I need to focus on getting food.

  "Hey guys, how's it going?" I say and step into the room.

  They both freeze and look at me.

  "Gavin, you're all right. Thank God," Sarah says.

  "Come here buddy," Gary says and lifts me up off the floor in a giant bear hug. Then he drops me suddenly. "I'm sorry. That was stupid. Are you okay?"

  "I'm healing. I'm pretty far along, considering," I answer.

  "I'm so sorry about Becky, Gavin. You know I thought she was great. I'm so sorry," Gary says.

  "Me too, Gavin. I never had the chance to meet her, but Gary's told me great things about her. It's tragic," Sarah chimes in.

  "It's okay, I'm fine. I mean I'm not fine yet, but I will be. I am starving. I need food. You must have some Manna Bars or something on you, Gary? Mind sharing with a friend?"

  "Uh, shouldn't you wait for the doctor to come back? I'm sure he'll know if you should be eating," he answers.

  "Seriously, Gavin, half your insides are mine. I don't think you should be eating yet," Sarah adds.

  "You aren't the only one who can heal quickly," I retort.

  "In that case, I guess you won't need me the next time a monster destroys your organs. That'll be nice because, believe it or not, having your kidney and intestines removed stings just a bit. And pain killers don't work on me," Sarah shoots back.

  "I'm sorry. You know how it is when you need calories. Thank you, Sarah, really. And you too, Gary. You both saved my life, I don't know how to say thank you enough. I can't even believe what you did," I say as warmly as I can make myself. I mean it too.

  "It's okay. After what you've just been through, I should just stow the attitude. Next time you need an organ, consider it yours. I'll give you another kidney right now if you want. Having three couldn't hurt." I guess Sarah deals with difficult situations with humor.

  “Yeah, me too buddy. I just hope the next time I have to haul you around, it’s cause we stayed out too late at the bar,” Gary says.

  "Gary, about those Manna Bars?"

  Gary roots around in a small bag attached to his belt. He has to make sure he has an emergency supply of calories on him at all times. He can burn ten thousand calories in ten minutes if he pushes himself.

  "You're sure this is a good idea? For the record, I still think we should wait for the doc," Gary pleads even as he extends the Manna Bar to me.

  "There's no bigger expert on human anatomy than me, especially my own anatomy. I’ll be fine."

  Gary relents and I take the bar.

  "I have to hand it to you, Gavin. You definitely have more skills than I thought. I'm barely walking around, and I'm one of the faster healers out there. It was pretty touch and go for a while. You just kept saying you had to get Becky—that and some weird stuff about how he isn't crazy, God is on think.Net," Sarah says.

  As she talks, I open up the Manna Bar and take a bite. It's disgusting. What she's saying about think.Net sounds vaguely familiar. Was The Beast really talking to someone? I wish I could remember more clearly.

  "You said it. I can't believe you walked away from that fight. That can't just be luck considering what The Beast is doing now. I saw on think..." Gary trails off. Sarah shoots him a dirty look.

  Gary didn't mean to say that.

  "What do you mean, Gary? What did you see on think.Net?" I ask.

  "Nothing. Nothing you should worry about, Gavin. You need rest," Sarah says.

  "Tell me what he meant," I demand.

  "You can check think.Net and see for yourself," Gary answers.

  I log on to think.Net and access the news. My head rings from the breaking alerts and emergency warnings for the Los Angeles MA. The Beast has been on a rampage. He's killed more than a hundred people so far. There are few conflicting reports, but it seems like he's on a warpath in the Metro Center. He's totally out of control now. It looks like I pushed him completely over the edge. Nita was right about that.

  Suddenly, I'm back in the second stage of grief: anger. The Beast is still out there, only now he's more bloodthirsty. I can imagine all the other Beckys he's killed, all of the husbands who've lost wives, children who have lost their parents, parents who’ve lost their children. The Beast is taking everything from those people, just like he took everything from me.

  My brain registers levels of rage I did not know I could hit. I choke it down. Anger won't get me anywhere now. The Beast took everything from me. Now I will stop him, even if it costs me my life.

  I turn without saying a word and try to run out the door, but Gary's in the way. He's a wall.

  "Get out of my way," I say.

  "No, Gavin, you're being an idiot. You're in no shape to fight him. You need to rest. Let the cops handle him," he says.

  "The cops can't handle him. You saw it on think.Net yourself. He's too much for the police. It's going to take a bomb to stop him, or a Different."

  "Then let the OEC handle it. I'm sure they've got someone who can handle him. Some super powerful agent," Sarah chimes in.

  "Maybe they do, but how many more people will die before that agent gets here? Besides, the OEC tried to stop him before and failed, Nita told me that. I came closer to stopping him than anyone has."

  "Close, but you still lost. You almost died, Gavin. Are you going to do better now that you're full of stitches?" Gary asks.

  "What else do I have to lose? I'll probably die, but only probably. The Beast is definitely going to kill more people. It's also a fact that I'm the only one who's willing to try, unless you're suddenly going to start using your muscles for something more valuable than deliveries. You're certainly stronger than me." I turn from him to Sarah. "Maybe you want to help, Sarah. You can heal so quickly, you're basically immortal. Are you about to try and stop him? No? So maybe you both should keep quiet and be happy there's someone else to put themselves on the line in order to make things better. Thanks for the Manna," I sidestep Gary and walk out the door.

  #

  The Slug is moving excruciatingly slowly. We move forward for three seconds, then sit for three minutes. The Beast did a number on the Slug system. Trains are being rerouted all over the place. I just hope they're still making stops at the Metro Center.

  He's still on the loose. The cops thought they had him surrounded a minute ago according to think.Net, but now he's burst through the perimeter, and they've lost track of him again. I don't know how I'll stop him, but I have to try. Maybe I can get another gun from a dead cop. All I need is one lucky shot, right in the eye.

  My head rings with a think.Net call from an unknown source, Nita. I’m not in the mood to have another person try to talk me out of going after The Beast. Talking to her won’t do any good. If she wants to stop the train, she will. I ignore the call. It doesn’t matter. I can feel her pushing into my head anyway. I relent and let her in. I’m curious enough.

  >>>Gavin. You are injured. You should be resting.

  <<
  >>>I have many resources at my disposal. I just used some of them to save your life while simultaneously helping you avoid a lengthy prison sentence. I would think some gratitude would be called for.

  <<
  >>>I am not going to try to stop you, Gavin. I am going to help you.

  <<
  >>>No, I think it is a terrible idea. Your probability for success is extremely low. It shows a surprising lack of rationality. However, I have already spoken with Sarah, Gary, and Larry. They seem convinced that you are not going to change your mind, and I am inclined to believe them. I reconsidered my options, changing your position on going after The Beast fro
m a variable to a constant. The next best choice is to assist you in that endeavor and hope that you are fortunate.

  <<
  >>>First, I said irrational, not stupid, and second, if you are planning on fighting The Beast, you are going to need to get to him. I am going to get your train moving.

  Almost immediately, the train lurches forward and starts picking up steam. I can hear the engineer calling for more slugs to throw in the furnace.

  >>>What do you know? It just became an express.

  <<
  >>>The police have chased The Beast down into an apartment building, The Shimmering Tower. I assume you know it.

  <<
  >>>It is a good locale for a confrontation. Police have surrounded the building. The Tower's surface is completely sheer and the Maceo-tempered glass is impenetrable. It will not be possible for The Beast to climb it. The Hoover pipe has a Maceo Steel grate. The only other point of exit, besides the lobby, is on the roof. I do not believe The Beast could survive the three hundred story fall. He is trapped inside the Tower.

  <<
  >>>No, they refuse to take action. They claim not to have the proper resources, but in reality, they are too scared to launch an assault. I cannot blame them, they might succeed, but casualties would be astronomical. In addition, the building had not been evacuated before The Beast entered, so they are hiding behind a concern for the hostages’ safety.

  <<
  >>>I have relayed that information to the Chief of Police. He has taken it under advisement and chosen to do nothing. There is smaller political fallout from doing nothing rather than doing something and it failing. The Chief is hoping someone from The Office of Exceptional Cases will take control before he has to make a decision. His hopes are accurate. The OEC Agent will be here in approximately eight hours.

  <<
  >>>Considering the situation, eight hours is faster than I would have anticipated. The Tower has fallen out of fashion in the upper classes. Its apartments are about 30% occupied and few of those contain families that rate as high-level figures.

  <<
  >>>According to estimates, given the time of day, we calculate that there are 103 to 107 individuals. Mostly women and children as the majority of workers have not yet returned from their jobs due to The Beast's delay of the Slug system.

  <<
  >>>It is virtually certain that The Beast has already killed some of that number. The police will not move in, no matter how strong a case I present. Perhaps waiting for the OEC is the best response.

  <<
  >>>What makes you think you will?

  With that, she ends the call.

  What does make me think I can stop The Beast? Is it because I’m delusional? Or crazy? Nita isn’t wrong, I know I don’t stand much of a chance. The odds are not in my favor. I know that, but I still want to continue on. Why?

  I don’t know the answer, but I can imagine some poor man standing on a train right now. I make myself feel what he feels. He's coming home from a long day at work. He has a good job, the kind of job most people would kill for, mid-management at Ultracorps. He works a ten-hour day on a good day. He's in advertising, in charge of placing ads for a pretty unimportant product, Griffin Hair Spray.

  He spends his days fighting with the people at think.Net TV for more product placement for his spray. He fights the radio stations for ad spots he can afford. He argues with the sales team leader who wants to know why the spray doesn't have more ads. After ten hours of that, he has a forty-five minute train ride that takes him to the one place, the one person, who makes it all worthwhile, his wife, his Becky.

  Right now, that man is standing on a train hoping that the monster he keeps hearing about isn’t anywhere near his Becky. He’s wrong. Right now that lunatic could kill his Becky with a flick of the wrist.

  Now I imagine a hundred wives and husbands, each with their own Beckys. I can imagine the pain and the hurt losing them would cause. I have a chance to stop that pain. I have a chance to save the ones they love. Even if I’ll probably lose and probably die, there is some hope. Maybe I’m crazy, but I’d rather die trying to do something that matters than live a long life safe and sound and eating hamburgers all day. I want to try to make a difference.

  28

  I take no joy in the destruction I reap. I love my Forgotten Sons even as they disappoint me. The harsh world I will create may appear an unjust punishment. Rest assured it is done with purpose. It is my divine will. It is to prepare the earth for a new era. The death of my Forgotten Sons shall make them a part of something much greater than themselves.

  Chosen Sons: 21

  The Beast makes his way down the elevated Slug tracks. They are the fastest way to the Shimmering Tower. The fastest way to his salvation. The Beast stops and smells the air. There are many men with guns up on the tracks ahead. They are setting a trap for him. He climbs down to the underside of the elevated train tracks and jumps between the support beams to continue on his way.

  The police have no idea The Beast is approaching from underneath them. The officers are hiding and watching the tracks, waiting to spring the trap. None of them notice as he slips into the station from below. The Beast silently approaches one of the cops from behind and grabs the man by the head. He squeezes and the man's skull cracks open like a cantaloupe. The Beast kills three more in a similarly silent fashion before any of the officers see him.

  One cop finally spots the creature and cries out. The Beast promptly slashes the man's throat with his claw. The Beast then tears into the pack of officers, ripping through them like tissue paper while easily avoiding their panicked shots. He kills with his teeth, his claws, and his fists. He does not feed though. These cops have done nothing to deserve salvation so The Beast will not give it to them. They will have to answer to the Lord for trying to kill a Chosen Son on a holy mission of salvation.

  The officers on the other side of the tracks can only watch as The Beast tears their buddies to shreds. They can't shoot or they might hit one of their comrades. Soon enough, it isn't an issue, as The Beast kills every officer on his side of the platform.

  The police on the other side of the tracks start shooting. The Beast lifts up two of the dead cops and carries them in front of him. The officers’ ForteSilk body armor makes them the perfect human shields. The Beast charges across to the other side of the tracks, his corpse-shields keep him from taking anything but glancing gunshot wounds as he charges.

  Once he closes the gap, the cops don't stand a chance. The Beast throws the human shields like bowling balls, knocking several of the officers over. Then he finishes the job with his claws. A few of the cops manage to connect with panicked shots, but the side arms they carry are not powerful enough to do any serious damage to The Beast. Once all twenty-two of the officers in the station are dead, The Beast continues back down the tracks. Soon the Metro Center's skyline comes into view, and The Beast's target becomes clear, the Shimmering Tower.

  Even back in Houston, everyone had heard of the Shimmering Tower. It was the Crown Jewel of the thirteen Towers Maceo built for the Los Angeles MA. Three hundred stories tall, it was a testament to what was possible in Los Angeles with the use of Differents
. With Maceo's miracle metal and Harry Richards absorbing the energy from earthquakes, Los Angeles was now the perfect home for the tallest building in America.

  Only the most rich and powerful had the privilege of living in the Tower. The Forgotten Sons became rich and powerful through exploiting Chosen Sons. These humans were the perfect targets. The Beast has done this before. He has made an entire city terrified of him. “The Beast's Feast” will be nothing compared to what he will do in the Shimmering Tower.

  He jumps off the tracks and runs to the Tower as fast as he can. He walks right into the lobby. There is an elderly security guard working on a crossword puzzle.

  “Who you here to see?” the guard asks without looking up.

  Before The Beast can answer, a deafening screech stops him in his tracks. An alarm sound fills the air and a voice comes on, echoing off the buildings. It is the voice of a Chosen Son.

  “This is a Metro Area alert. This is Metro Area alert. There is a violent Different on a rampage in the Metro Center. Repeat, there is a violent Different on a rampage in the Metro Center. He is considered extremely dangerous and should be avoided at all costs. Residents are advised to stay in their homes and lock the doors. The police are working to apprehend the suspect. The Different is described as large and animal-like. Anyone who sees him should call the police immediately. This is a Metro Area alert. This is a Metro Area alert,” the Chosen Son yells.

  The guard looks up and sees The Beast standing before him. The Beast looks as animal-like as any human possibly could. The old guard reacts surprisingly quickly. He pulls out his sidearm and puts two bullets in The Beast's chest before the creature can snap the man's neck and crush the gun. The bullets hurt, but the gun was weak and does not slow The Beast down. He pounces directly from the guard to a couple waiting for the elevator, crushing them to death.

  The elevator is the one possible hitch in The Beast's plan. He does not want to fight the Strong-Man who runs it. He is counting on the fact that most of the Chosen who live with the Forgotten are cowards. Acting like a hero means an immediate prison sentence in Great Basin, according to the law. Humans love their laws and so do the Chosen who live with them.