by Jason Luthor
So, of course I stop for a second, because what the hell could be making that noise so far down? I try and make it a point not to just go walking into traps if I can avoid it, but I’m not ready to turn around without finding something to eat. It’s . . . it’s weird though. I’m walking in almost pitch darkness, suffocating in humidity while my ankles splash in saliva, and this bass just keeps getting louder and louder until it’s actually rattling in my bones. I can literally feel it everywhere around me by the time I start to hear a melody.
And . . . that’s when I recognize it. I know it, because I remember talking to Tommy about it. The piano, the strings, and then the beat. It’s haunting to listen to it drift out of the shadows, but I know it. “A Life in Roses,” I whisper as I get closer. It shouldn’t be here. There shouldn’t be anyone playing music this far down in the first place, and why that song? Why that specific song? Maybe more importantly, there just shouldn’t be anyone down here, period. The only reason the Cultists were even as far down as they were was because they were chasing us. Plus, they had dozens of guys that watched out for each other. This though? Just random music in a place that should be dead? This is something else.
It’s just getting louder and louder, until I finally see this tiny sliver of light shining from underneath a door. Now, what am I supposed to do? Just go and knock? I mean, I have to find out who’s playing it, right? I can’t just walk away without finding out. It’s just, as I’m walking and the hall’s filling with the bass, I have this one second where I flashback to a few weeks ago. This is how it happened. This is how I made my first kill as a Scavenger. It was me and Captain Sunny leading a room clearing, and we had the drop on some Cultists because of how loud the music was playing. When we broke into the room, everything became a mess of gunfire and screaming. It was over in seconds, but that was the first time I ever shot at another person. There aren’t a lot of faces I remember anymore, but that first kid, the first person I ever . . . the first person I ever had to shoot? He’s still burned into my eyelids. Every day. So, creeping up to this door, I start to feel like my chest is locking up. My lungs are screaming for air like I’ve been drowning, and even my muscles start burning as I’m standing in front of the door. I just start thinking to myself, I can’t go inside, I can’t go inside, I can’t go inside.
Just . . . That’s when I hear it.
Talking.
Laughing.
People that sound happy.
I feel like I’m snapping out of a coma. I’m still standing there, in a dark hallway, but suddenly the reality of what’s going on slams into me. The anxiety that’s pumping in my veins feels like it’s going to give me a heart attack. I mean, what the hell? Why is this a thing? I am literally standing dozens of floors beneath the nearest human being, inside of a building that’s infested with a disease that’s wiped out almost every human in the world. How is it that I suddenly just stumble onto a room, in the middle of nowhere, where it sounds like there’s a party going on? I mean, at that point, there’s only one thing I can do, right?
So, I go in. I mean, why the hell not?
And then, as impossible as it is, I’m standing there, in a living room, just bathing in a light of rosy hues. There’s a cake on the table with more than a dozen candles burning on it, and a big sign hanging on the wall that says ‘Happy Birthday’ in big, colored letters. Everything’s hazy, like I’m looking at all this through a soft filter, but it feels so warm. Plus, I can smell food cooking in the kitchen. It’s really intense, like it’s the first time I’ve ever smelled anything. I’m suddenly not scared either, which is weird because everyone in there looks my way simultaneously. I don’t recognize them, but they recognize me, apparently, and one of them, an older man, starts moving in my direction.
I flinch as he reaches out, but then his arm’s wrapped around me with his fingers squeezing my shoulder. “Why, hello there, angel. Your brother’s been in his room a spell. Would you mind fetching him? Food’s almost ready, and his friends want to see him. He’s the party boy, after all.”
It’s so incredibly weird that I don’t know how to take it, and for half a second, I just stare at him. “Um. Who are you? What’s going on?”
“Now, don’t act like that. You know very well we’ve been planning this for a month. You were the one that helped me keep my mouth shut so we wouldn’t spoil it for Johnny.”
And that name . . . When he says that name, I tear away from him. “Who?”
“Anna, do I have to go in there and haul him out myself?”
“Anna?” I paw at my face, because I can feel myself starting to sweat. Suddenly, I feel a cold shiver run down my spine. “Uh, yeah. Sure. Let me get him.”
“Everything alright, angel?” He asks this as he steps in my direction, which immediately makes my body tense up.
“No, I’m fine. Just, uh, long day. You know.”
“Getting ready for college. No need to say any more. At least, if Apeiron ever finishes that university campus they’ve been talking about making, you won’t have to worry about leaving the Tower when it’s time for your new classes. Wouldn’t that be something? You could sleep in all you like and still make it to school.”
“Oh, yeah. Sure. I am super looking forward to it.”
“Of course you are. You’ve always been so smart. You’re my girl, Anna. You’ve always made me incredibly proud.”
“Thanks.” I mean, what else am I supposed to say? “Uh, think I’ll get Johnny.”
“You do that. Then we can all sing him a proper happy birthday.”
He’s all smiles, and it’s so weird to have someone I don’t even know hug me like that. But he . . . I don’t know how to describe it. I know he loves me. Or, loves whoever he thinks I am. It’s almost weird to leave the room, because something in me doesn’t want to go. Something in me wants to stay there and hang out with them, wants to eat some cake, but I pull myself away somehow and go into one of the bedrooms. The minute I close the door behind me, I see someone on the bed. He’s about my height, with sandy blonde hair and blue eyes. In other words, he doesn’t look anything like me. I’m about three shades darker at least, and my kinky locks of hair are a lot different from his silky thin strands. Still, when he sees me, he waves and says, “Hello, sis.”
“Uh, hey, Johnny.” Am I doing this right?
“I know, I know. Father probably wants me outside. Am I right?”
“Yeah, pretty much. You know, they got you a cake and everything. Plus, your friends are waiting.” It’s weird talking to him that way because I’ve never seen this person in my life, but at the same time, looking at him, I feel like we’re connected somehow. “So, you want to get out there?”
“I don’t know. Can you spare a moment?”
“Sure, I guess?”
“Well, don’t act so enthusiastic about it.”
I chuckle. “Kind of having a rough day. Don’t worry. It’s nothing I can’t live with.”
“It can’t be rougher than mine. That’s what I was hoping to talk to you about.”
“Well, I’m here. So, shoot.”
“You sure? I don’t want to be a bother if your day is already glum.”
“No, really. I’m completely good.”
“Well, thanks. It means a lot to me. You’re a pretty good sister when you put your mind to it.” He smiles at me again, and the glow of his face just crushes my heart. “Let’s see. Where do I start? I was at one of the Apeiron labs today for my work assignment. They’ve had me going there and assisting with their tests.”
This is too weird. I know what he’s talking about. It was in the diary. “Your internship, right?”
“Of course. What else would I be talking about? Doesn’t matter, I suppose.”
“I suppose.”
“So, I was at the lab, and I haven’t really spoken to anybody about this, but . . .”
The kid trails off, but I know something’s bugging him. I mean, something would be bugging him, if he were real. An
yway, I step up and just kind of stand there by the bed for a second. “Is everything okay? Did something happen at work?”
“No one thing ‘happened.’ It’s more of a case of many things happening. I haven’t said much because I’m not supposed to, but they’ve been doing human trials in the lab.”
“The, uh, the human energy fields.” I literally remember reading about this. “Is something wrong?”
“Just, the researchers were talking to me about perhaps stepping in for a test or two. They mentioned they had to remove some of the other people from their study. Now, they did say nothing was wrong, but do you know that feeling you get when you think something’s not in its right place?”
“Are you kidding me? I literally get that all the time. I just felt like that a second ago when I was standing outside.”
“Well, I feel as if something’s not right at the lab. I’m not saying anybody’s getting hurt, but don’t you think it’s just a bit odd that they would ask me to step in, but not tell anyone? Isn’t that, oh, I don’t know, suspicious?”
“It’s the definition of suspicious. You’d think they’d at least get your parents’ permission. Our parents, I mean.”
“Of course. That seems like it would be appropriate, right?”
“Is that all that’s bothering you?”
He looks away, and I can tell he’s holding something back. His eyes are closed, like he’s really trying to block something out. “I saw something the other day. I don’t know what it was, but it . . . I can’t get it out of my mind. It fouled something up inside of me.”
“What was it?” I sit on the edge of the bed, and I don’t know why, but I feel like I’m supposed to be there, like he really is my kid brother or something. “Hey. Whatever you need to talk about, you can tell me.”
“It’s just, they were doing so many things down there. I saw this . . . creature. I can only call it a thing, because I don’t know any other way to describe it. It looked as if they’d taken a lump of muscle, but only the muscle, and made it come to life. Truthfully, it seemed as if it had its own mind. I thought it could have been something like an octopus’ tentacle at first. It wasn’t though. It was pulsing and slimy, and it kept growing, like it was trying to get out of its cell. They had it trapped inside a glass cage and ended up burning it to keep it from breaking out. Now, I just keep asking myself, what could it have been?”
And the thing is, while he’s talking about it? I know exactly what he’s describing. I mean, only one thing fits that description. Creep. I can’t just tell him that though. How would his sister know that? “Uh, I don’t know. Maybe it was some kind of animal you’ve never seen or something?”
“An animal they cooked alive? And no, it wasn’t. It was a living thing, and it wasn’t natural. Do you think they came up with it from their human experiments?”
“Johnny, I really don’t know.” That much is true. Nobody knows where the Creep came from. “How did you even see any of this stuff, anyway?”
“It was on a monitor I shouldn’t have been looking at in the first place. I was trying to get one of the researchers to sign off on some lab samples I was bringing to him, and he left the room to confirm the delivery. I saw it all happening on one of the screens while he was away. I’m sure I wasn’t supposed to see it, so I acted as if I was on my phone until he got back. I can’t get it out of my head though, Anna. It feels almost as if it’s been burned into my eyes.”
“I know the feeling.”
“So, what should I do?”
“Well, you should probably not volunteer for whatever it is they’re doing there. I know you don’t want to tell anyone about what you saw, which I get. Just don’t get yourself into any trouble you don’t have to. Dad would probably like to know about whatever it is you saw though. I mean, it’s probably the least you can tell him.”
“Should I quit?”
Will it matter? This isn’t really happening, right? “I don’t know. Just, stick to lighter stuff. Don’t go to any labs you shouldn’t. And, you know, try not to act suspicious. You don’t really know what that stuff was, even if it was disgusting.”
“Quite.”
“Right. So, just, don’t do anything that’ll get you into trouble. It’d . . . I mean, I know dad would get worried if something happened to you.”
The kid nods and then turns in his chair. Before I know it, he’s got his arm around me, and I can actually feel his breath trailing down my chest. It’s the first time I realize how much I miss the feeling of someone just wrapping me up. I used to revolt when people touched me, but that feeling right there, with him hugging me, is the best feeling in the world. “Thanks, Anna. I don’t say it much because, well, you’re my big sister. Still, you’re amazing.”
“Uh. Thanks.”
He pulls away. “I remember when I was a little boy. I went into the basement at the old house, and I got lost. How silly of me, right? The basement wasn’t even that big, after all. But then the light bulb popped off. The lights we used weren’t like those here in the Tower that can nearly run forever. So, I was scared out of my wits and frozen in the back of the room. The ground was always so cold down there, and the air smelled like mold. We never cared because mother and father always looked after us.”
“Yeah, I mean, obviously.”
“But you were the one taking care of me that day, and I got away because I hated having a babysitter. We were always like that. Neither of us wanted to have someone looking over our shoulder.”
“Well, that’s what it’s like when you’re stubborn.” I sigh, because even if I don’t know this kid, I do understand what it’s like to want to be free. “Sometimes, you just want to get out on your own.”
“That’s what got me into trouble though. One moment, I’m standing there, going through boxes and looking for my old toys, and the next, I’m so frightened that I can’t move. The door is closed, so it’s pitch dark. I’m just a child, so what do I do?”
“I guess you don’t bravely go searching for the exit.”
“You know that’s not what comes next. I start crying my head off. That’s likely the first time in my life I thought something truly terrible was going to happen to me. But, that’s when you open the door. Do you remember? I see you standing there in the light, and before I can move, you’re running for me. I still remember that it was the most amazing feeling to have my big sister save me. As much as you could irritate the daylights out of me, you were always there.” He stops and laughs, but it’s shy, like he’s nervous. “I don’t know. I love you. I realize you know that, but I just thought I’d tell you for once.”
“Yeah.” Hearing him say those words just makes me feel this weird burning in my chest. Maybe it’s because he really means it, or maybe it’s because I never had anyone say that to me after the age of 10. Whatever it is, I feel like the pressure builds up in my heart until the words spill out. “I love you too, Johnny.”
“Well, don’t get too sobby on me. We have a party to go to. You know how upset father would get if he saw me crying at my own birthday party?”
“It would make you seem like a bit of a wuss.”
“And with all my friends out there?” He laughs as he looks away and wipes his eyes. “Well, do me a favor and let everyone know I’m coming out. I just need to get myself together.”
“Oh, right. I’ll let dad know.”
“Got it. Thanks, Anna.”
“No problem, Johnny.” I say it like I’ve known him forever, and I throw open the door fully expecting to walk back into the party. Now I’m the one whose all smiles, but the minute I step back outside . . . I know where I am, it’s just not where I was a few seconds before. I’m back in the apartment I’ve been using since I got down here. Whoever was here . . . they’re gone now. The weird part is . . . Well, it’s all weird, but there’s food where the cake used to be, and I can’t help wondering . . . did I grab that at some point? Did I find food, find my way back here, and then just start completely los
ing it?
The laughter’s gone. The music’s gone. The warmth is gone, but for some reason, I still throw open the bedroom door like I expect Johnny to be there. He’s not. I’m all alone again, and I just keep thinking . . . just keep wanting him to be there, because I could really use anyone to talk to. I guess the conversation really messed with me, because I sit on the couch for almost half an hour before I want to move again. I used to joke about how you were my only friend, recorder. Then I met real friends, and . . . well, now I don’t know where they are or if I’ll ever see them again. After seeing Johnny and his family, talking with them and feeling like I belonged with them, I just really miss my own friends a hundred times more.
Dodger’s Recording 26
It’s been three days since we left the monitoring room. Obviously, we didn’t expect it to take this long. I mean, this is supposed to be a rescue, right? We’re supposed to find Mike and go after Jackie, right? This was our chance to be real heroes and save the day. This could’ve been my time to shine and really prove I can pull it together when people needed me instead of always just being the techy girl. Instead, we’ve made almost zero progress. It . . . it sucks, alright?
Tommy’s been telling me it’s not my fault. He can say that until he’s blue in the face, but it’s my job to find a way to get us through these halls. It’s hard though. When Jackie took off, she didn’t have to maneuver through the sort of Creep we’re finding. It’s like, whatever Mike did when he lost his cool, when he made the Creep start rioting, it completely sealed off the area where we last saw him. So, here I’ve been, like an idiot, trying to find us a new route to wherever she jumped. It’s just so hard when, everywhere we turn, the hall’s completely blocked up with Creep. This isn’t a situation where we can slide through or crawl by. Seriously, every hall is choked with tendrils. No matter how hard I try to map us a new way through, we just keep running into dead ends. I don’t know if Mike’s dead in that room or if he’s unconscious and needs our help. What if he has a chance to survive but doesn’t because I’m blowing it here?