Reboot

by Amy Tintera

  “Gabe,” he corrected, wincing as she pointed it at the wall behind Zeke.

  “Come out from behind the couch, Gabe. I’m not going to shoot you. Unless you deserve it.”

  He crept out of hiding, cautiously reaching for the gun. “I’ll just take that.”

  Addie rolled her eyes as she handed it over, and I shot her an amused look.

  “Hey.” I turned at the sound of Desmond’s voice. He plopped a ladle of something into a bowl. “Do you want dinner?”

  “Yes, thank you.”

  “Then come and eat.”

  I scurried into the kitchen, peering into the bowl. It was some sort of stew. I gave him a grateful look as I spooned some into my mouth. I hadn’t expected to be fed again.

  “I thought the lower numbers were supposed to be nicer!” I heard Gabe exclaim from the living room, and I glanced over to see Addie holding a tranq gun to his chest.

  “Adina, stop torturing Gabe,” Tony called with a chuckle.

  I almost laughed, but Desmond was staring at me like he was plotting my demise. I swallowed my food and wiped at my mouth. He’d been quiet and moody all evening, obviously not in favor of the plan.

  “Why are you helping if you don’t want to?” I asked.

  “I said I would, didn’t I?” he asked. He’d pulled his brown hair back into a short ponytail, and the sharp edges of his face looked harsh. He wasn’t an attractive man, even when he was happy.

  “And you seem so pleased about it.”

  All I got in response was a glare. I considered taking my food in the other room, but I had too many questions. While he didn’t seem scared of me, he appeared to hate me only slightly less than the average human did.

  “But why help us at all if you hate us?” I pressed.

  He let out a long sigh and leaned against the counter. “I don’t hate you. I just don’t trust you’re not going to come back and kill us all.”

  Valid concern, in my opinion. “So you decided to free us and take your chances?”

  He paused, sliding his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “There was a discussion a few years ago. When we decided we needed the Reboots gone to have any sort of success against HARC, some people thought we should kill you.”

  “Ah. And you saw their point.”

  He cleared his throat. “Maybe a little. But then Tony was like, ‘Let’s just meet one. Let’s go rescue one and talk to them without HARC watching and see what they think.’ So we did.”

  “And the Reboot was . . . what? Nice?”

  “No. Or hell, I don’t know. She sat in the living room and sobbed. Wouldn’t say one word to us.”

  “She probably thought you were going to kill her.”

  “Yeah. None of us really expected that reaction, though. We thought she’d fight back, attack us. When she didn’t and it came down to it, we couldn’t kill her. We’d heard rumors of Reboots up north, so we got her as far as we could and let her go. Asked her to talk to any Reboots she found about the possibility of them taking in any others we rescued. You know, see if they’d be willing to work with us. And they were.”

  “Why couldn’t you kill her?” I asked. “HARC eliminates us all the time. Tony must have seen it.”

  “I’m sure he has. But it’s different, when you’re sitting with a fifteen-year-old who doesn’t really seem all that different from you.” He shrugged. “I’ve always thought we were taking a terrible risk, freeing you, but it was the best of two shitty options. So here I am. Hoping you lot will be grateful enough to not come back and destroy us all.”

  “If it helps, I have no interest in coming back to kill any of you.”

  A hint of a smile crossed his face. “I appreciate that.”

  “Des, stop it; they’re not murderers.” Tony put his hands on my shoulders and I jumped, almost dropping my spoon. It was weird he didn’t mind touching me.

  I minded it, though, so I sidestepped his hands and frowned at him. He either didn’t notice or didn’t care, because he just smiled at me. I glanced at Desmond again. Maybe he was the only sane one here.

  “Wren, you want to come map this out again with me?” Tony asked. “I want to make sure my guys know where they’re going, but they’ll be following you.”

  I nodded and joined him at the table, standing behind the humans while Tony again outlined the route we’d take to get inside. It was dark now, and he had to move a lamp closer to the table for us to see it.

  “And then you’ll come out here,” Tony finished, running his finger through the HARC lobby. “Or wherever you want, I guess. After you release a hundred Reboots I think you can probably take your pick of exits.”

  A smile tugged at the edges of my lips.

  He had no idea.

  THIRTY-TWO

  I HUGGED MY ARMS AGAINST MY CHEST, SHIVERING IN THE cool night air as I stared up at HARC from the shelter of the trees that surrounded the building. It stood tall and black at the edge of the Austin slums—fifteen or twenty stories high. I’d never come out far enough to see it as a kid.

  A group of about ten rebels stood several yards to my left, dressed in what looked like black HARC uniforms. They were fakes, but we were hoping no one would notice in the chaos, and the rebels would be able to get upstairs to steal the weapons and medicine HARC had been hoarding. It was a huge risk, and I could see the fear in their tight, blank expressions.

  Callum grunted behind me and I looked down to see Tony and Addie tightening his ropes to a boulder. We’d dug a hole next to it, only a few feet deep, but enough to keep him hidden while we were inside. His legs were securely bound, the cloth around his mouth muffled his occasional growls, and he could barely move.

  Addie replaced a couple of the tree branches over the hole as she and Tony crawled out of it. It was barely visible through the thick bushes, but I could see Callum’s dead eyes glinting as he looked up at us. He’d never come back.

  I was terrified it was too late.

  I turned away and walked a few feet until I could see the sky. The sun was just beginning to rise and the horizon was bathed in red and orange and blue.

  “I went up north once when I was kid, just before the virus hit.” I closed my eyes as my mom’s voice filled my ears. “We drove for three days from Austin, and when we got there I remember looking up at the sky and wondering where the rest of it went. There’s more sky in Texas, darlin’. You ain’t ever gonna know anything else, but look up and appreciate it occasionally anyway.”

  “Wren.”

  I opened my eyes, and they followed the streaks of color until they disappeared in the distance.

  “Wren, let’s go. Desmond should have the power off in a few minutes,” Addie said.

  I turned and took the helmet she held out to me. I secured it around my chin as Tony looked down at Callum.

  “He should be fine there until you get back,” he said with a nod. “No one will be out here; they’ll be chasing y’all in the opposite direction.”

  “Do you know how long it will take for the antidote to work?” I asked. “Will we be able to run right away?”

  “Should be really fast. The lower the number, the faster it works, in my experience.” He paused, clearing his throat. “What do you want me to do with him if you don’t come back?”

  I avoided looking at Callum. I needed to be focused, and every time I caught a glimpse of him I started to panic. “I’ll come back.” There were no other options.

  He opened his mouth, seemed to think better of it, and gave me a sad smile. It was not the most encouraging expression. “Okay, hon.” He turned to join Gabe and Zeke with the other humans.

  Addie and I headed closer to the chain-link fence that surrounded the HARC property. It wasn’t electrified, but we were to wait until after they shut off the power so the cameras wouldn’t catch us.

  We stood in the shadows, the only sound the chirping of the crickets and the breeze blowing through the trees. My heart beat so loudly I was sure Addie could hear it, but sh
e just stood there stoically, staring at the building and the one security guard in sight. I pushed away the screaming fear in my chest, pushed away the little nagging voice that was reminding me this was my only chance to save Callum. I didn’t need fear or doubt right now.

  I just needed to focus.

  The lights clicked off and I ran, the sound of boots hitting the grass all around me. I wrapped my fingers around the metal and jumped up, flying over and landing a few seconds before Addie. The humans trailed behind us.

  I held my hand out as we approached the building and everyone behind me stopped. Pulling my tranq gun from my pants, I crept across the grass and onto the slab of concrete. My boot squeaked as I stepped forward and the officer on duty whirled around, mouth wide open as I squeezed the trigger.

  The dart lodged in his chest. He took one step before his head began to droop, and I caught him as he fell, hauling him against the building in hopes that the camera wouldn’t spot him right away.

  I grabbed the key and access card off the guard’s belt and stuck the key in the lock, throwing the door open and motioning for Addie to hurry. She darted through and I followed, holding it open for the rebels as well.

  The lobby was dark and deserted, the round desk in the center of the room empty. I’d never seen a HARC lobby before. Reboots were always dropped off on the roof by shuttle.

  They had posters on the walls. Signs advertising their brilliance.

  Count on HARC for the cure! The woman in the poster smiled, apparently completely cured of whatever had ailed her.

  HARC protects! That poster had a picture of Reboots on it, although they were in the distance and blurry next to a shuttle.

  Addie turned and gave the posters a baffled look as we passed.

  “Are they serious?” she muttered.

  The black tile looked like a dark river as we hurried across it to the stairwell. We stepped aside and let the humans go up first, since they were headed to the top floors with the food storage, human meds, and the armory. I was almost sad as I watched them lumber up the stairs. It was a suicide mission for at least half of them, if not all, and they knew it.

  I let the door close softly behind me. We sped up the pitch-black stairs, taking them two at a time until we reached the fourth floor. Dim lights clicked on in the stairwell. The generators were on.

  Addie looked back at me as she gripped the door handle. I nodded.

  She opened it just enough to peek through. “Two guards at the end of the hallway,” she whispered. “At least two in the room, as far as I can tell.” She inched the door open a bit wider. “See where we’re going?”

  The white hallway stretched out in front of me. The guards at the end were bored, leaning against the wall and talking quietly to each other, despite the momentary blackout.

  To the left was the control room. The doors were open, and one officer sat in front of a large computer as another peered over his shoulder. Judging from their relaxed expressions (and the fact that neither of them had their guns out), they hadn’t spotted us on the camera feeds yet.

  Good news.

  I nodded to Addie. “I’ll take the two in the room.”

  She threw open the door. I crouched down and darted around her toward the control room as gunfire exploded from the end of the hall. The guards whirled from the computer, reaching for their guns. But they were too slow.

  I fired twice, hitting the chest of one and the neck of the other. They hit the ground in seconds, just before I heard the thuds of the two humans in the hall.

  I let out a slow breath. Step one down.

  I turned to give Addie a victorious smile, but it faltered at her dazed expression. She blinked and raised her fingers to her temple.

  There was blood.

  I jumped over one of the officers and pushed her helmet back. The blood soaked her hair, covering my fingers as I searched for the bullet hole.

  “No, it’s okay,” she said. She trembled as she nudged my hand away and pulled her helmet back into place. “It just grazed me.”

  I nodded, even though my stomach had twisted into knots. It looked like it had more than grazed her.

  Addie swiped her fingers across her bloody forehead and stepped past me into the control room, shoving the closest human away with her foot. She sat down at the computer. She tapped the screen a few times as I paced behind her, nervously glancing out into the hallway as I waited for more guards to barrel through the doors.

  I was incredibly lucky that bullet hadn’t hit her more directly. I didn’t think I could get to medical and free the Reboots. I would be stuck in here without her, and Callum would be stuck in that hole until HARC found him.

  I gripped the edge of the doorframe, watching as Addie touched the screen again. She stopped suddenly, leaning back, and I opened my mouth to ask what was wrong.

  Doors Unlocked flashed across the screen in bright red letters.

  “Got it,” she said, jumping up from the chair.

  We ran through the hallway and back into the stairwell, a burst of energy exploding in my body as my brain realized we might actually make it.

  “How long do you want me to wait?” Addie called as we flew up the stairs. “I’ll probably make it to the shuttles first.”

  “As long as you can,” I said as I passed the sixth floor. “But if HARC starts closing in, just take off. Find someone else to fly the second shuttle.”

  “Okay.”

  I stopped in front of the seventh-floor door and glanced at Addie as she continued up to eight. She gave me an encouraging smile, but I could see the blood still trickling out of her helmet. She had to wipe it away again as she darted up the steps.

  “Good luck,” I called.

  She laughed. “I think you need it more than me. I’m about to get backup from a hundred Reboots.”

  She disappeared around the corner and I tightened my grip on the tranq gun as I turned to face the door again. This was it. If I didn’t get to the medical lab there was no hope for Callum.

  I reached for the handle and wrapped my fingers around the cool metal.

  The door swung open from the other side and I leaped back, grabbing on to the railing before I tumbled down the stairs.

  Three officers poured into the stairwell, guns raised.

  I ducked as the first officer pulled his trigger. I aimed my gun at his leg and sunk a dart into it, leaping back as he fell headfirst for the stairs.

  I got off another shot, hitting the second officer in the stomach as a bullet from the third guard rocketed into my shoulder. I grabbed his arm as he tried to fire again and twisted it behind his back, pressing the tranq gun directly into his back. I let him go as he slumped forward.

  The excitement of a fight crept in over my fear, and I almost smiled as I jumped over the officers’ bodies and reached for the door. I threw it open to see a long, white hallway, deserted except for one lone human running away from me. A human in a white lab coat.

  My eyes widened as I reached for the real gun at my hip. I needed that human.

  “Stop!” I yelled, purposefully angling the gun too far to the left as I fired.

  But he kept running. His shoes squeaked on the tile as he headed for the exit door at the other end of the hallway. I took off after him, aiming my gun at his right shoulder. I pulled the trigger.

  He let out a scream and stumbled, grunting as his knees hit the floor. He whipped his head around and his eyes widened when he saw me coming.

  He pressed a bloody hand to the floor as he tried to get to his feet, but I was there first. I hauled him up by the back of his lab coat and wrapped my arm around his neck. I glanced down at the name on his coat. Bishop.

  “Bishop,” I said, squeezing my arm tighter to his neck as he squirmed. “I’ll make you a deal. You help me into that room”—I pointed to the medical lab, behind clear glass to our left—“and I won’t kill you.”

  Bishop said nothing. He continued to wriggle and choke in my grasp, tears running down his cheeks. He
was young, in his early twenties perhaps, with a round, cute face. He was on the short side for a man, but I still had to stand on my tiptoes to hold him.

  “Hey,” I said, loosening my grip against his neck just slightly. “Deal?”

  He nodded. A strangled sob escaped his mouth and he opened it wider. Preparing to scream.

  I pressed the gun to his temple as I pulled him down the deserted white hallway. “Screaming is my very least favorite thing.”

  His mouth snapped shut.

  I stopped in front of the lab door and reached down for Bishop’s key card. I swiped it across the lock and the door slid open. Bishop staggered forward as I dragged him into the room.

  The narrow space stretched out almost the whole length of the hallway. Computer screens lined the walls and lab tables ran down the center. It smelled like disinfectant and Reboot. Someone had tried to erase the smell of death and failed.

  Tony had said the antidote would be at the back of the lab, locked up tight in a large glass room. I lugged the human down the center of the lab, past the computers and long tables and thick books.

  The vials were lined up in neat rows in cases, just like Tony had said. They were also labeled just as Tony had suspected, with random letters and numbers I didn’t understand. There was no way for me to know which one I needed.

  I swiped Bishop’s card against the lock and the doors opened. I stepped into the cool room and released my arm from the human’s neck, poking my gun into his good shoulder.

  “Which one is the antidote?”

  He blinked at me. There were tears on his eyelashes as he squinted down at my bar code.

  “One-seventy-eight,” I said. “It’s not for me.”

  He hesitated, looking from the vials to me. He must have known he could lie to me. He could point me to some awful drug that would do terrible things to Callum. I was relying very much on this human’s fear of me.

  “I just told you I’m One-seventy-eight,” I said, pressing the gun harder into his shoulder. “It doesn’t bother me in the least to kill you.”