Rising: Parables From The Apocalypse - Dystopian Fiction

by Norman Christof

  Rising

  Parables From The Apocalypse

  Book Five

  Written by

  Norman Christof

  Published by Digital Storm Solutions Inc.

  This is a work of fiction. If you find any similarities to real people, places, events or planets you're sadly mistaken.

  © 2014 Norman Christof / Digital Storm Solutions Inc.

  No part of this publication may be copied, reproduced in any format, by any means, electronic or otherwise, without prior consent from the copyright owner and publisher of this book.

  Author Info at http://NormanChristof.com

  Also by Norman Christof

  Parables From The Apocalypse

  Endings

  Revealed

  Mutation

  Awakening

  Rising

  For me.

  Cover Photo Credits

  flickr.com/photos/grmisiti

  Table of Contents

  Freedom

  Lunch Chat

  Girls Club

  Nobody Cares

  Changing the Rules

  Dynamic Duo

  Out on the Town

  Regent Regalia

  Christa vs Leekasha

  World War III?

  Nightmare Voices

  Breakfast Planning

  Messing With Minds

  Who’s Thelma?

  Trafficking

  Drugged Out

  Setback

  Cell Block Blues

  Cellmates

  Locked Up

  Recruitment Drive

  Let Loose

  Enough Is Enough

  Secure The Block

  Captured

  Hogans Heroes

  Queen Leekasha

  Freedom

  Leekasha furiously paced back and forth in the lobby of Fort Knox. “Damn it, Chambers! I’m the closest thing you have to the second coming of the messiah, and you want to keep me locked up in some archaic old vault. What is wrong with you people? What is it that you’re all so scared of?”

  “Well, there is that little issue of the killing spree you went off on not that long ago,” the general replied. “My bosses wanted you locked up for good for that.”

  “You know they’re complete idiots, right? Either that, or they just don’t believe I’m capable of doing the things I can do. They do understand what I can do, right?”

  “I assure you, Leekasha, those that need to know about your abilities are well informed on the matter. It’s a complicated matter, and we need time to work things out with you.”

  “It’s been three months, Chambers. Three months since I’ve been stuck in this place working with your lab rats, answering their questions and performing their little made up tests. How much convincing do you need that I’m not a threat to anyone? I’m not the psychotic that Andreas was. If anything, I’m quite the opposite.”

  “There’s more to it than just that, and I believe you. I really do. But, it’s not just about you being a model citizen. There are people with a vested interest in the way things work now. What you and others like you represent is a radical shift in the way of life not only in the Americas, but in the entire world. Nobody knows what to do with you. Of course they’re scared. It’s their job to consider the worst-case scenarios. I think actually, they enjoy it.”

  “General, you know full well if I want to walk out of here, there’s nothing you can do to stop me.”

  “I really hope you won’t do that, Leekasha. We’ve come a long way here, and we just need you to be patient a little longer. The negotiations are progressing nicely, and we should have approval shortly to start releasing other zombies from the Pacize drug.”

  “You know I really don’t need any such approval? I could walk out of here and start releasing zombies every day. It’s by my choice that I’ve agreed to play by your rules. It’s been my choice that I let you perform tests and bide your time with negotiations to placate your higher ups. The fact is, I don’t need permission from any of you to do anything. It’s all been my choice. I don’t even know why we’re having this conversation.”

  “You know full well why we’re having this conversation, Leekasha. It’s got nothing to do with needing my permission to walk outside these walls. Like you said, you’re more than capable of doing just that. Guilt is the only thing that’s keeping you here, and I know that. You feel responsible for those people that Andreas killed. You feel like you should have been able to stop him.”

  Leekasha closed her eyes. “I couldn’t stop him. I know that. He was stronger than I was. He was stronger than any of us will ever be. He was the next big mutation, and I did stop him eventually. He would have gotten much stronger if I hadn’t. You’re right about my feelings of guilt, but not for the reasons you think. Those people didn’t need to die, but they were only people. Ordinary, everyday people. They weren’t Andreas. He had so much potential. I put an end to that potential. That’s what I feel guilty for.”

  “There’s still potential in you. We still don’t know what you’re capable of. The lab tests show you’re still changing. You’re still evolving. You might still become more than he could have.”

  “I can’t sit in this box forever, General. I will walk out that door one of these days, and you won’t be able to stop me. You might make it more difficult, but you can’t stop me.”

  “I know that. Maybe it’s time for us to lighten up on the rules. I’d rather have you leave under friendly terms knowing that you’re free to come back.” Chambers stood aside and motioned Leekasha towards the door. “Go ahead. I’ll give the orders that you’re not to be interfered with.”

  “You’re serious?”

  “Yes, of course I’m serious. It makes more sense this way.” Chambers spoke into his communicator. “Watch Commander, this is General Chambers. New orders for Leekasha. I’m granting her complete in-and-out privileges for the facility. She’s free to come and go without any additional authorizations until further notice. Carte blanche. Notify all security personnel immediately.”

  “You really are serious. After three months keeping me locked up in this place and poked and prodded, you’re finally just letting me go.”

  “It’s what you wanted, and you’re right anyways. There’s nothing we can do to keep you here if you wanted to go. So, now you’re free to go.”

  “Yes, OK. Well then, I think I will.”

  Leekasha opened the front doors to the lobby and walked outside. The door closed behind her as she walked down the steps towards the main gate. Inside General Chambers issued new orders to set up a surveillance team to watch but not interfere with Leekasha. Simply to watch and report back. Leekasha spent the rest of the day walking around the perimeter of the facility. She watched the guards, who watched her, but did nothing. Just after dusk, she walked back through the front gate, down the main road, paused at the front door for a few moments and then walked back inside.

  Lunch Chat

  The cafeteria was almost full, but Christa always managed to find a table to herself. There were plenty of new staff at the fort since the first time Christa had been here. The world outside the fort had changed drastically. The original staff who had spent a large portion of their career locked away here now had a chance to be part of a civilized society. It was far different than the one they had left behind, but generally speaking it was a better place. At least for humans. For the doped-out zombie population it was a different story.

  Who wouldn’t want to go back to a home that was totally taken care of by your own zombie slaves? Nobody called them that, of course. They were j
ust helpers. It seemed more civilized. They cleaned, cooked, fixed things, and pretty much worked non-stop. The never took breaks and only slowed down long enough to eat and sleep. They never complained, but to be honest they couldn’t really say much. Some could, but they had stopped trying long ago as no one listened. Humans were finally living the Utopian dream written about in all those pulp sci-fi stories. The ones where robots took care of everything, and most humans got to do whatever they wanted.

  Leekasha walked from the food line and over towards Christa’s table. Leekasha asked, “Anyone sitting here?” as she took a seat without waiting for an answer.

  Christa looked up from her Wednesday pasta surprise of the week to shake her head. “There’s never anyone sitting here, but I thought you always took your food to your room. Finally decided to socialize with all your friends?”

  “You mean friend … singular. There’s no one else in here like us. This has got to be the only place where their type actually have to clean up after themselves.”

  “We’re not the only ones. There’s another.”

  Leekasha looked surprised. “What are you talking about? I thought we were the only ones.”

  Christa dismissed her with a wave of her hand. “Ah, no one really. Hey though, I heard you went for a walk outside the other day. Chambers finally agreed to let you out, I see. I’m surprised you’re still here. I figured you’d be halfway around the world by now.”

  Leekasha looked down at her food. “Yeah, sometimes you need to be careful what you wish for. I think it was more a case of him finally agreeing that there was nothing he could do to keep me here if I really wanted to leave. He kind of caught me off guard. I didn’t actually have a plan for what to do next.”

  “Dr. Montgomery can’t be happy about that. She’s gotten tired of testing me, now that she has you to poke needles into. If you just decide to up and leave the place she’d be at a loss with how to spend her days. What are you going to do when you do decide to leave? Any big plans?”

  Leekasha changed the subject, saying, “The food’s not so bad today. Any idea what that is under the noodles?”

  “You’re afraid to go out there, aren’t you?” Christa asked. “You’re afraid of what it will sound like having to listen to all of them screaming. You’re afraid of what happened last time with Andreas. Actually, I think you’re afraid you’ll become like him. You can’t live your whole life down in this dungeon.”

  “Hell no, I’m not afraid,” she insisted, taking a drink from her cup of water. “I’ll head out soon. I just wasn’t ready the other day. I need to get a plan together.”

  “Oh yeah, and how’s that plan coming?”

  “Why do you care so much about me? If anyone’s hiding down here, it’s you. You’ve been here a hell of a lot longer than I have. You even came back after you were free of the place. Maybe you should get your act together before you start accusing me.”

  “I’ve got a purpose down here. You’re just killing time. Montgomery still has some testing she’d like to do on me, and in return, I’m working with her to find a better solution to the Pacize drug.”

  “Oh what, so you’re a scientist now that your last approach didn’t work out so well. Sounds like you’re getting a bit desperate.”

  “Yes, I am. I spent six years trying to break through to one of us my way, and look what happened. Six years of listening to all that suffering out there, and the first one I was able to reach turned out to be a homicidal maniac. That doesn’t mean I’ve given up. You need to help too. This isn’t right, the way things are out there. Zombies shouldn’t be slaves to humans. We have way too much potential. Just look at the two of us and what we’re capable of. Mind control, rapid healing, accelerated learning … who knows what else. The drug is just their first attempt to stop the wars and the bloodshed, but it’s not the best solution. There’s got to be something better.”

  “How do you know? You’re no smarter than me … you’re actually the old version of us. Why should I listen to you?”

  “I may not have all your abilities, but I have been around. I know what the fear was like during the horror of the wars. I know how desperate the humans were to stop it. I may be younger than you, but the years I’ve lived through aged me.”

  Leekasha pushed the rest of her food away. “I don’t know. I’m not built for this kind of stuff. I wouldn’t be any good out there.”

  “You don’t know that. You don’t know what you’re capable of. I’ve got an idea. There’s someone else I think you should talk to.”

  Girls Club

  The elevator door opened on the main medical floor and Leekasha started to get off. Christa grabbed her lightly by the wrist, and said, “No, actually we’re going down one more.”

  Leekasha looked at her, confused. “I thought we weren’t allowed down there.”

  “Well no, not usually, but I’ve made some special arrangements just for today. Let’s just say that one of the security staff got the notion to add my biometrics to the database for a certain lab downstairs.”

  “I see,” said Leekasha. “So I suppose we’re going on a secret girls’ outing, are we?”

  “Well, yeah, I suppose you could say that. Not like we’re heading out for martinis and manicures or something fun like that. To be honest, I’d rather stay away from this floor altogether. It brings back too many bad memories.”

  The elevator chimed their arrival, and the doors opened. Neither one was keen to step out first, but Christa led the way. They headed past some storage rooms and labs that looked like they hadn’t been used in years.

  “Where are we going?” Leekasha asked. “This place is looking a little sketchy. You’re not planning to off me in some dark corridor and throw me into the basement furnace, are you?”

  Christa managed a smile. “No, nothing quite so horrendous. We’re just going to meet an old friend. We haven’t talked in a while, so it might be a little uncomfortable. To be honest, it’s going to be very uncomfortable. Ah, here we are.”

  Christa scanned her finger over the reader and the door lock clicked open. Christa pushed the door open and went inside, followed closely by Leekasha. The room was half lit, and none of the light switches Christa tried made a difference. In the middle of the room, suspended from the ceiling, arranged in anatomical order, were an array of tanks each containing a major body part. The tanks had a bluish liquid circulating through them and around the body parts. One tank contained the head, one contained the torso, and the remaining four tanks contained the arms, legs, feet and hands. The tanks were supported by an intricate arrangement of wire strands. Tubing and additional wiring ran from tank to tank, allowing the flow of fluid through them.

  As they moved closer to the center of the room, the fluid glowed brighter in the tank. The fingers moved, and the head rocked back and forth within the tank.

  “This is your old friend?” Leekasha asked. “Damn, where are her eyes? It’s missing its eyes. Everything else is there but the eyes.”

  “Yes, her eyes are missing. They were removed long ago. They nicknamed her Patzy.”

  “Sounds like a grandmother’s name. Who picks a name like Patzy?”

  “It’s not her real name, the lab techs gave it to her. I don’t think anyone knows her real name. She’s patient zero … PATZy for short.”

  “I don’t understand,” Leekasha said. “Patient zero for what?”

  “She’s the first of us. She’s the one that started the zombie wars all those years ago. The very first mutation. There were a bunch more after her, before you and me, but she’s the first. You could say she’s our great-great-great-great-grandmother.”

  “What the hell is she doing in there? Why is she all in pieces? She still alive?”

  A young girl’s voice emanated from speakers connected to the tanks. “Alive it asks. She knows little … why?” Loud feedback screeched from the speakers and Leekasha jumped. Christa laughed. “Why so little … broken it seems.”

  “No n
eed to be afraid, Leekasha. She won’t hurt you. I told you, she’s one of us.”

  “Yeah, right, nothing to be afraid of. If that’s true, then why is she locked down here in the basement and stretched out up there like some kind of Frankenstein freak?”

  “Freaks they called them. Once upon a time. All freaks … all of us. Afraid this one is. Freak afraid of freak … funny not.”

  “They had problems with her when she first came in,” Christa answered. “They didn’t know how to control us back then. This was the best they could come up with at the time.”

  “She’s a damn nightmare. How is she even alive?”

  “Nightmares dreams dreams dreams … no difference. This one confused. Guidance. Direction. Many paths. Choose.”

  “Patzy,” Christa said. “You know me. Do you remember? We’ve talked.”

  Patzy answered, “Remember I do … the next one once … no more … this other is next copied. The better … maybe last better? Why here … go!” The fluid in the tanks glowed red for an instant, then back to blue.

  “She needs help, Patzy. She’s not the next mutation, but she was close to him. He’s dead now. You need to guide her. Help her to understand.”

  “Dead?” Patzy answered. “He? Him? Male … no more … end of line … males can’t birth again … endings.”

  “What the hell is she talking about, Christa? She makes no sense.”

  “She does,” Christa answered. “You just need to listen. I think she’s saying that because the last mutation was a male, that’s the end. There won’t be any other mutations. All the others have been female, that’s what kept them spreading. Andreas’ mutation was the last.”

  Patzy spoke again. “Not better one … only copy. Not better … different only … time to go.”