The Praegressus Project: Part One

by Aaron Hodges

  The woman behind the reception desk stood as they approached, her eyes flicking nervously between Halt and his slaves. “Welcome… Doctor Halt,” she faltered, then smiled, “Congratulations on your announcement.”

  Halt smiled. “Thank you, Janet. We’ll be needing the elevator to the subterranean department.”

  “Of course, Doctor.”

  As the receptionist turned to her computer, a whirring sound came from one of the elevators. The numbers above the door started to flash, but Halt had already turned away, and was now languishing against the desk, the smug grin still on his lips.

  Sam’s eyes widened as the steel doors to the elevator slid open and a girl stepped out. An old man, a young girl, and a boy followed after her, then froze as they looked around. They hesitated only a second, before silently starting to creep away from the elevators.

  Sam could only stare as Richard and Jasmine slid around the far end of the receptionist’s desk. His heart pounded in his chest as he glanced at Halt, wondering how the doctor had not noticed them. Breath held, he clenched his fists against the desk, and silently screamed for them to move faster.

  They made it another two steps before Halt finally looked up.

  CHAPTER 34

  “Artemis,” Halt hissed. “What are you doing out of your cage, old man?”

  A hushed silence fell over the hall as all eyes turned to look at the group huddled around the far side of the receptionist’s desk. Richard and Jasmine stood frozen in terror, their wings half-spread, staring across at Halt and Sam. Behind them, the old man straightened and stepped past them.

  “Doctor Halt, it’s been a long time,” the old man’s voice was hushed with age.

  Halt brushed past Sam and strode towards the old man, a scowl darkening his face. “You thought you’d just walk out the front door, did you? Thought you’d finally do something,” he shook his head, “I should have killed you years ago.”

  “Death would have been preferable to the life you allowed me,” the old man took another step, closing the distance between himself and Halt. “To watching you slaughter my children.”

  Behind the old man, Jasmine was struggling with the young girl from the first facility. She was snarling across at Halt, her grey wings flapping in Jasmine’s face as she struggled to break her hold. But the old man Halt had called Artemis only had eyes for the doctor.

  “I will happily oblige, Chead,” Halt growled. As he spoke, his hand flashed out and caught the old man by the throat.

  Artemis’s eyes widened as he fought to break Halt’s hold. “How?” he croaked the word.

  Smiling, Halt lifted him into the air. “A little experiment of my own. Did you not notice my eyes?”

  With that he tossed the old man casually aside. He went crashing into the heavy metal desk with a thud and slumped to the floor. Halt followed him, hauling the old man back up.

  “I thought I’d finally deciphered the Chead’s developmental issues,” Halt spoke in a casual tone as he smashed a fist into the old man’s face. Beyond him, Jasmine, Richard and the young girl could only look on in shock. “Unfortunately, I was wrong.”

  He slammed the old man back into the desk, and grinned as his victim groaned. “But your sweet Mira will soon show me the answer. Do you like her pretty wings? She is something else now, Chead no longer. And soon, when the virus is perfected, I will follow her.”

  Halt laughed as he yanked the old man back into the air. “But you, Artemis, you are obsolete.”

  At that, Halt wrapped both hands around the old man’s neck and twisted sharply. A loud crack echoed down the hall. The old man went suddenly limp, his eyes fluttering closed. Smiling, Halt tossed him aside like a ragdoll and then turned to look at the others.

  “No!” across the hall, the young girl screamed and tore herself lose from Jasmine’s arms.

  Sobbing, she threw herself on Artemis’s broken body, her wings spreading out to enfold the old man. Her body shook as she buried her head in his chest, her sobs echoing out across the hall.

  A bemused smile played across Halt’s lips as he turned to look at Sam and his companions. He nodded across at the winged intruders. “My patience for our guests’ insolence grows thin. Take care of them.”

  Sam hesitated, glancing from Richard and Jasmine and back to Halt. Behind him, Paul and Francesca took a reluctant step forward, their eyes wary. The collar seemed to constrict around Sam’s throat as he swallowed, reminding him of Halt’s unspoken threat.

  He looked again at Jasmine and Richard. There was no love lost between the three of them, not now, not since they’d faced the final test in the facility. Since that day, there had been blood on all their hands, a shared guilt, a common hatred.

  Even so, he had no wish to fight them.

  Seeing Sam’s hesitation, Halt raised his wrist, flashing the watch on his arm. “Do it. I can still kill your girlfriend from here, Samuel. Don’t reverse all your good work now.”

  Sam gritted his teeth and nodded. He stepped up beside Paul and Francesca, squaring off against the two intruders. Jasmine and Richard shared a reluctant glance, their emerald wings spreading out to either side.

  “Give up, Richard, Jasmine,” Sam called across to them. “You’re out numbered. We don’t want to hurt you.”

  Richard stared back, contempt in his eyes. “Give up?” he asked. “What have they done to you, Sam? How can you stand there and ask us to go back? You know what they’ll do to us.”

  Sam ran a hand through his long hair, struggling to keep the pain from his face. He knew the truth of Richard’s words, but he could not turn back now. He had come too far now.

  “So be it,” he breathed.

  To either side of him, Paul and Francesca started forward, and growling, Sam leapt. His wings beat down hard, carrying him into the air and straight for Richard. But with a snarl, Jasmine bounded forward to intercept him. He staggered as her fist caught him in the ribs and sent him reeling, the fury of her onslaught catching him unawares.

  On his other side, Richard charged in, but Paul and Francesca threw themselves into the fray, diverting Richard’s attention away from Sam. The three of them went down in a rush of flailing limbs and feathers.

  Sam swore as Jasmine’s wingtip flashed out and caught him in the face. Lurching back, he raised his fists and gathered himself, narrowing his eyes as she came at him again. He tensed as she stepped within range, but before he could attack she leapt into the air, and her foot flashed out to slam into his collar bone.

  “Traitor!” Jasmine shrieked.

  Sam finally managed to duck her blow, and then drove forward. Catching Jasmine around the midriff, he hurled her backwards. She spun, her wings beating hard to break her fall. Smiling, she lifted into the air. Adrenaline thudding in his skull, Sam stretched his wings and leapt after her.

  Above, Jasmine rose to the ceiling, her emerald wings shining in the fluorescent lights, and then dropped like a stone towards him. The move caught him by surprise, and her boot slammed into his face with a crunch. He crashed back to the floor, the impact driving the breath from his lungs. Gasping for air, he struggled to sit up.

  A scream came from overhead, and through sheer instinct Sam rolled to the side. Jasmine struck the ground where he had lain with a harsh crack. Porcelain chips sliced the air as the force of her attack shattered the tiles.

  Recovering, Sam rolled to his feet as she straightened. Spinning, his wings flashed out and caught Jasmine square in the face. Taken unawares, she staggered, and he saw his opening.

  Sam lunged forward, his fist flashing out to catch Jasmine in the shoulder. His arm shook with the force behind the blow, and it sent the smaller girl stumbling backwards. But she wasn’t about to go down so easily. Growling, she bared her teeth and straightened, but Sam was already on her, his boot flashing out to catch her in the stomach.

  Jasmine gasped as the blow connected and she slumped to her knees. Seeing his opening, Sam clasped both hands together, and as Jasmine tried t
o regain her feet, brought them down on her head.

  At the last second she looked up, but there was no time to avoid his attack. The force of the blow drove her face first into the tiles. Her wings thrashed as she collapsed, forcing Sam to leap clear. When he looked back, she was struggling to stand. But as he watched, her eyes rolled back in her skull, and she toppled back to the ground.

  Panting softly, Sam stood over her. An awful guilt ate at his stomach as her eyes flickered open. A low moan came from her throat as she looked up at him, her brown eyes half-glazed.

  “Please, Sam,” she coughed. “Don’t make me go back. Kill me, but don’t make me go back.

  Sam shivered as he looked down at her, his heart clenched in a vice. His breath caught in his throat, and images rose from his memory. Looking down at Jasmine, listening to her beg, he saw again the padded room, saw the pain in Jake’s eyes, as Sam chose his own life over his friend’s.

  And he knew he could not do it again.

  Letting out a long breath, he shook his head. “I can’t do this.”

  He turned away from Jasmine then, closing his ears to her pleas. Looking out across the hall, he saw Richard pinned against the far wall, desperately trying to hold off Paul and Francesca. The young girl still crouched over Artemis, sobbing into his chest, her grey wings drooped across the ground. Halt was standing over her, a dark scowl on his face.

  As Halt reached down and lifted the girl into the air, Sam stepped towards him.

  “Halt!” he growled. “Leave her alone.”

  CHAPTER 35

  Chris stumbled as Ashley’s weight shifted in his arms, and pain flashed from his bullet wound. He gritted his teeth, but the pain wasn’t half as bad as the night before. It was clear now the virus had changed more than just their muscles, done more than give them wings. It was the only explanation for Ashley’s miraculous recovery. Before they’d left the infirmary, Liz had checked the wound beneath her bandages – it was almost healed.

  A whimper came from Ashley and Chris slowed his pace. He took the opportunity to catch his breath, as he glanced ahead at Liz.

  She strode down the long corridor, following the directions Artemis had given, her shoulders rigid. Chris swallowed, fighting the need to go to her, to spin her around and tell her everything would be okay. Remembered pain flared across his skin and he turned his eyes to the floor.

  In his arms, Ashley moved again. He glanced down as her eyes fluttered open, a frown creasing her brow. “Chris?”

  His heart fluttered at her words. A smile spread across his face as he drew to a stop. Ashley wiggled in his arms, lifting her head to look around. “Liz?”

  Liz grinned as she turned back. “In the flesh,” she stepped forward, and then paused, her shoulders falling.

  Ashley closed her eyes with a groan. “Argh, I feel like I’ve been hit in the head with a brick.”

  “Chris probably bumped it on the way out of the infirmary,” Liz commented wryly.

  Chris laughed. “Please, I was careful. And besides, I’ve been shot, so join the club, Ash.”

  Ashley raised an eyebrow. “Pretty sure I joined that club first,” she grinned. “But put me down if you’re that much of a baby. I think I can walk.”

  Grinning, Chris carefully put Ashley on her feet. She swayed slightly, and he offered her his good arm. “Easy there.”

  Nodding, Ashley panted softly as she straightened. Her snowy wings hung behind her, flexing slightly with each breath. Her fingers gave Chris’s arm a squeeze and he smiled back at her.

  Then her eyes shifted to Liz. “What, no hug for an old friend?”

  The smile fell from Liz’s face and she quickly looked away. But Chris had caught the shimmer of tears. Ashley looked at him quizzically as Liz started off again, but Chris only shook his head. “It’s a long story. It can wait. Come on.”

  They started off again, moving slowly still to allow Ashley time to recover. She was still uneasy on her feet, no doubt the result of the drugs lingering in her blood stream. But that she was standing at all, just a few weeks since being shot from the sky, was a miracle in itself.

  “What are you guys doing here?” Ashley asked softly as they walked. “What madness made you come back here?”

  In the lead, Liz snorted. “Blame Chris,” she replied, apparently having recovered some of her humour. She looked back. “He was distracted by a pretty girl. Got us all caught.”

  “Sounds about right,” Ashley laughed.

  “It wasn’t that bad,” Chris half-heartedly defended himself. He shifted Ashley’s weight on his shoulder, and continued after Liz.

  “Hmm, let’s see. You got shot,” Liz counted off his failings. “Got us caught and locked away. Is there something I’m forgetting?”

  “Hey, we found Ashley, didn’t we?”

  Liz snorted again and Ashley laughed. They drifted into silence as they made their way down the long corridors. No one appeared to stop them. There was not another living soul in sight, and Chris remembered what Artemis had said about the operations being moved. He guessed their new headquarters had been the facility they’d escaped from in the mountains.

  Idly, he wondered where they were now, where such a place could be hidden amongst the packed buildings of San Francisco. The facility was massive, and there had not been a single window in sight. The weight of the concrete walls and ceilings pressed in around him. His wings twitched, and a longing for the escape of open skies rose within him.

  Soon.

  Chris breathed out a sigh of relief as they turned the final corner and found steel elevator doors waiting for them. Artemis’s directions had been perfect – but from here on, the way forward was a mystery. Artemis had never been beyond the elevators. He had lived his entire adult life within these concrete walls, never allowed to see the sun, to feel the breeze on his skin. The thought of such an existence almost brought Chris to tears.

  Liz strode into the elevator as Chris and Ashley staggered after her. Ashley was taking more of her own weight now, and she disengaged herself from Chris as they stepped inside and leaned back against the wall. Moving to the control panel, Liz pressed the button for the lobby.

  “Hope there’s no one home,” she murmured.

  To their surprise, the elevated shuddered and began to move upwards. Chris glanced at the others, sharing in their disbelief.

  We’re underground, he realised.

  “Where’s Sam?” Ashley said suddenly.

  Chris bowed his head. “We don’t know.”

  Ashley’s eyes shone, but she nodded.

  “We’ll find him, Ashley,” Liz said as the elevator lurched to a stop.

  They looked around as the doors slid opened, readying themselves for whatever lay without. But nothing could have prepared them for what they saw.

  A massive hall spread out before them, lined columns stretching up to the domed ceiling high above. A row of reception desks stood in front of the elevators, where three women were huddling in fear. Beyond, pure chaos had engulfed the gallery. Men and women stumbled across the tiled floor, rushing for the revolving door at the far end, while in the centre of the open space, five winged figures fought in a blur of sound and movement.

  A flash of green and copper feathers came from overhead as Sam soared upwards to clash with Jasmine, only for a sharp kick of her boot to send him crashing back to the ground. Then a shriek drew their attention to where Richard stood wrestling with two newcomers. Chris stared as Richard leapt into the air, his wings beating hard, only for the boy to jump on his back. Black wings tore the air as he dragged Richard back down. They crashed into the tiles and rolled across the ground. Richard was up first, but the girl was on him before he could recover, sending him staggering back towards the far wall.

  And in the centre of it all, Halt.

  The doctor stood with arms folded, a calm smile twisting his thin lips. His grey eyes watched the scene with detached interest, as though this was no more than a game to him. The body of Artemis lay a
t his feet, his neck twisted at an awful angle. Mira crouched over the old Chead, weeping into his chest. As Chris watched, Halt reached down and pulled her from the body.

  Hauling Mira up by her hair, Halt held her in front of his face. “Ah, my little Mira,” he laughed as she tried to break free, but her strength was no match for the doctor’s.

  Liz was right, Chris thought as he stepped from the elevator. He had not had time to think about Liz’s accusation back in the cages, but here was the evidence. Mira had more strength in one arm than an ordinary man. Halt shouldn’t have stood a chance.

  Chris slid towards the reception desks, Ashley and Liz following close behind as they sought to understand what was happening. Ashley was moving without aid now, and some of her old sharpness had returned to her eyes. They crouched together behind the desks as the women fled into the elevator, and shared a glance.

  “Halt!” a familiar voice echoed through the hall. “Leave her alone.”

  Chris peered over the desktop and watched Sam striding across the hall, his copper wings spread, his face filled with rage.

  Halt stared for a second, seemingly taken aback by Sam’s pronouncement. But his surprise did not last long. Scowling, he tossed Mira aside and then he reached down to press a finger to the watch on his wrist.

  A collective scream carried through the hall as Sam and the two winged strangers crumpled, their hands clutched desperately at their necks. Face dark with rage, Halt strode across to their incapacitated friend. Lifting his boot, he drove it into Sam’s side, sending him sliding across the tiles.

  “How dare you defy me!” Halt’s rage echoed from the ceiling as Sam clawed at the tiles, his body still convulsing. Caught in the clutches of the shock collar, Sam could do nothing to defend himself.

  On the other side of the hall, Richard stood over the boy and girl he had been fighting, blinking in surprise. A smile tugged at his lips as his gaze travelled across the hall and found Chris and the others. But Chris was already moving, racing towards Halt. He leapt past Mira as she staggered to her feet, gesturing for her to stay back. This had gone on long enough. It was time they rid themselves of the vile doctor. And this time, he wasn’t going to let anyone get in his way.