Coru tossed his depleted needle, retrieved the knife, flipped open the blade and handed it to his brother, horrified by what he was endorsing, but there was no other way. Not for him, not for Payton. Sometimes to save the many, you have to sacrifice the few.
With his lips pressed into a straight line, Payton gave a quick nod and set to his gruesome task.
Coru watched his brother insert the blade of the knife into the flesh inside his forearm. Thick, dark blood appeared at once, streaming down his arm and onto his heavily muscled thigh before pooling on the rug at his feet. Coru sucked in a lungful of air, remembering when he and Payton had each offered up their left arm to Patterawadee so long ago, it seemed, receiving protection from their “best guess” viruses from this century just before they’d both jumped into the Time Bore and lost one another. The mirroring of that simple action with this macabre one burned into his brain.
With a methodical sawing motion, Payton cut up the inside of his arm. Tears streamed from his eyes, but he made no sound.
Coru murmured, “Removing this from your arm will kill you. You said so at your rally.”
Payton gritted his teeth and nodded. “This is…what you’d call… the... mother…lode.”
“You’ll die.”
Payton nodded again, dropped the knife onto the desk, its job done. “Does it matter?” He dug his blood-slick fingers into his arm and pulled. The device made a sucking sound as it parted from his flesh, a sound Coru was certain he would remember until the last day of his life. It came out as a surprisingly small, dripping, crimson coated silicon wafer.
This tiny device was the harbinger of death? The source of salvation?
Abruptly Payton slipped down in his chair, his head lolling to one side. His eyes closed for a moment, his face unnaturally white. He raised his right hand, his fingers coated with thick crimson and strangely blackening blood. It shook, the wafer sliding inside his slick fingers. It fell from his grasp, falling and sticking to his shirt. He fumbled to catch it. Blearily, he looked up at Coru, squinting to focus. “You shouldn’t touch this. Let me...”
Coru complied, unsealing the tube and holding it out, his stomach roiling. The device made no sound going in, sliding down the side to the bottom. He sealed it closed. He had to believe this would save many lives. It had to, the alternative was too horrendous to consider.
Payton slipped further in his seat, his legs splayed. Nelson and Dom backed away.
Payton mumbled, “Take it to Freeland. They have everything there to replicate the antidote within twelve hours. They can produce thousands; millions of doses within hours. Once the antidote is administered, the devices can be safely removed.”
“A single dose won’t save you?”
“No. It doesn’t work that way. This… this device is different. Hide my body in the panic room so Zhang learns nothing of this. Go now. Take my son. The POE army advances in twenty-five days. Save what’s left of the world.”
Coru fell onto his knees before his little brother, pulled his pliant body onto the floor and into his arms. “You should know I’ve been back to our time—everything has changed. For the better. There is no Cloud Rez and Surface.”
“The Bore allowed you to enter?” Payton’s tone was plaintive now, his eyes wounded. “When we came to this place, to this WEN, I had no intention… of returning home. I thought you and I… would have the adventure of our lives… that we would be… heroes. I’d hoped we would never go back, that we would live a good life here, after we stopped Zhang... together. I wanted to be free of Cloud Rez, free of…” his head sagged against Coru and he was silent for a time, watching the blood ooze from the gaping wound in his arm dispassionately. Then he murmured, “But it doesn’t… matter now. You weren’t there. I was alone. I was scared. I had no one. I searched for you for so long, Coru. Everyday… I searched. Then, all I wanted… was to run back home, but… the Bore wouldn’t have me; rejected me. I tried so many times to escape this place…”
“Our time has changed, for the better,” Coru repeated. Payton needed to know this.
“Then… I was right.”
“You were wrong, brother. It’s better despite what you and Zhang have done. Genocide can never be the answer.”
“So… why… are you back?”
“My name is now in the histories as having lived my life here, in this time. I came back for you. I came back to stop you. To rescue you.”
“I remember now.” A slight smile touched pale Payton’s face, then dissolved into anguish, his body beginning to writhe. “I put it on an M-pod for you and father. You were meant to stay.” Payton cried openly now and Coru saw the wounded, lost boy inside the hardened muscled body. “What we’re doing now will… change it all again. Which way… will it fall in the future?”
“What we’re doing now will keep it safe. After that, it’s no longer up to us. The future is for others to decide. It always was. We can only control our choices now, today. We make the best choices we can and hope it’s enough. It’s called faith.”
Payton’s whole body jerked in spasms. He choked out, “I… once… had faith.”
“I know, Payton. You loved life, envisioned adventure, of doing good in the world. I remember that boy—full of ideas and dreams. I’m sorry I wasn’t here for you, Payton. You’ve got to know, if I could have, I would have been here, with you. I’m sorry you fell into Zhang’s influence. The man can twist and turn an idea, a genuine passion into…” He stopped. This was not the time. He sighed. “It doesn’t matter. My brother, left un-interfered with, would never have done these things. I know you brother. I… I forgive you, Payton.”
The spasms were slowing, Payton’s strength fading with them. His sigh of relief was weak. “I’m sorry… for it… all. I… Coru. How can you… forgive?” He raise a trembling, bloody hand and laid it against Coru’s cheek. “The Bore still waits… It will… remain until…” Pulling strength from somewhere, he willed himself forward, lurching against Coru, resting for a moment before he turned his face and whispered the location into Coru’s ear, before slumping against him. “In case you change your mind…Brother… I nev…” His eyes pleaded, then they closed. After a long moment, he murmured, his voice almost child-like, yearning. “Tree? Can I… can I come home now… Tree…?” His body softened, went slack.
Coru clutched Payton to him. This ruined boy. This wasted life. This most cruel, deliberate manipulation of a trusting, eager, adventurous, idealistic, stupid, smart kid. The pain was so great it swallowed Coru whole.
He slowly became aware of Wren, pulling at his arms. “I’m sorry, Coru, you must do as he says. We have to leave this place, now. We have no time. Look.”
Coru lifted his gaze and followed where Wren was pointing, taking a moment to realize what the empty rocker meant. Payton’s second, Boyd Thurman, was gone.
Coru’s gaze snapped back to her face. “He’s gone?”
“He can’t have gone far. I can pick up a fading mind—his, I think. Nelson’s gone after him. If he’s seen, if he raises the alarm, we’re finished before we’ve even started. We have to leave now.”
Still, Coru remained motionless on the floor, powerless to move. My brother, the open, eager boy I once knew is long gone. But in the end, he returned, and, for a single moment in time, in a single act, he’d done the right thing. It would have to be enough.
Wren nodded vigorously, silently agreeing with Coru’s pained mental revelation.
Dom came forward, squatted down, and gathered Payton up in his arms with tenderness. Numbly, Coru watched Dom carry Payton’s pliant body into the panic room. Dom had also known Payton before Zhang had reached him. Dom understood this loss.
After a moment, Dom returned with his head down, carrying an open box, which Coru assumed contained the sleeves of single doses. Wren locked the panic room behind him. Wiping his wet cheeks, Dom went to Noah, who was huddled in a corner. The boy’s green eyes were large and frightened. Dom picked him up and murmured, “Time to
go, son.”
Wren checked the seal of the glass tube containing the bloody subcutaneous device Payton had sacrificed his life to give them, then pressed it inside Coru’s hidden jacket pocket, followed by his art book. Then she cupped his face with both of her hands and looked deeply into his eyes. “This is the most important task we will ever do in our lives, Coru. We need to start now. Twenty-five days until the POE are deployed. Twenty-five days to protect what’s left of humanity.”
He stared back at her, focusing on her voice, the sweet sound washing over him, centering, steadying him. Then he heard her actual words and let them sink into his consciousness. Slowly a plan emerged, swelling like water poured over rice, growing, expanding, filling every available space.
Coru took her hands from his face and pressed them together inside his own. “We deliver the antidote. We win this war. Then I come back for Zhang.”
THE END
END OF BOOK STUFF
Hello, faithful readers. Here’s the part where we talk about where this story came from, what influenced it, and why I wrote it.
As you know from Book One, Lost Sentinel, the first question I asked myself was, “What would a person do if there was no one looking?” Big question, as it turned out, but I’ve already talked that through in the End of Book Stuff at the end of Book One, Lost Sentinel. Our family had a big eye-opener when we bought a tract of forested land along the Peace River as to the possible actions of men when they believed themselves to be unobserved.
I should say that I loved writing Lost Sentinel. It was my best writing efforts to date and was a hard-won story. I have three books in mind for this Earth Survives Series, and Book Two, Cursed Apprentice would be an even bigger challenge. How was I to unfold the undoing of the idealistic heart and mind of young Payton Wisla, tracking his descent into evil, and have my readers buy into it, have them believe it, accept the changes, even empathize, sympathize? At some point, that empathy, that sympathy would be a stretch, for sure. The bases of it all was, of course, that we humans can rationalize anything.
To set the stage right, I took a chance and re-wrote chapter one from Lost Sentinel, which is presented in Coru’s point of view, only this time, while writing it inside Cursed Apprentice, I presented the same events from Payton’s young eyes. A very different event, as it turned out. Wonderful experience for me as a writer. It worked better than I had hoped. Same outside actions; totally different take on the whole scenario. This is why witnesses tell such different recounts of shared events…
Dontchya just love it!?
Back to rationalization.
I did a lot of research into this unique human phenomenon, and studied one of my favorite books, Mario Puzo’s The Godfather to understand the changes an idealistic man could go through to become his own, feared, worst version of himself, and believe himself to be correct, even justified. I saw that Michael Corleone’s descent into evil came in steps, each decision seeming to be the logical next reaction, the logical next decision for that event. Like I said, we can rationalize anything. In my story, Payton had to learn to survive, face, and deal with each event rationally and understandably. At each challenging event, Payton Wisla’s—now passing as Mike Eggers—reactions and choices had to make sense. Each event had to result in a choice that was rational and would change the heart of my character.
The truth is, heroes are easy to write. Villains—good villains—are hard to write. Why? Because every villain is a hero in their own head, and every villain was once a hero who somewhere along the line took a wrong turn. To create a good villain, a writer must first show the reader the hero that person had once been, or could have been under different circumstances, and allow the reader to experience the character’s journey into evil. I wanted my readers to care about Payton.
My goal was not for my readers to excuse Payton, but to understand Payton.
The Godfather, once studied, was for me a blueprint of one such man’s journey. Reading and re-reading that book, I saw that Michael was more corrupt, more evil than his father had ever been. And what did I feel? I felt horribly sad at such a wasted life, such a pure, honorable soul, with such potential, sucked down. And I still love and mourn for Michael Corleone to this day. The Godfather is a fine, fine book.
This is what I wanted my readers to feel for Payton. I wanted them to mourn the loss of an idealistic person, mourn the arrival of the evil man that took his place. So, I plotted out the events that would lead Payton down that road.
I planned for the Indies portion of the story to only occupy ten days, switching back and forth between each day of their ten-day search for Professor Red and each of the ten years of Payton’s, then Mike’s evolving life. A balancing act, for sure, as I didn’t want either story line to telegraph what was happening in the other.
I wondered and worried, would my readers understand what I was trying to do? Comparing and contrasting two brother’s lives in such a way…
And could there be forgiveness in the end?
My hardest challenge in writing Cursed Apprentice was Professor Red’s final solution speech to his POE followers. What could Professor Red possibly say to these people where they would accept and even applaud the news of their enslaved participation in the future he was creating to “save the world”. It had to be good. Was I up to the task?
Here I thought of a man in history who rationalized the most horrendous “solution” to an entire nation and sold it! They adored him. They feared him. He was their savior; their salvation. He was their “Father”.
You have no doubt guessed of whom I speak.
Adolph Hitler made an annual “State of the union” type speech every year while he was in power. I had those speeches translated from German to English and studied his words, his tone, his reasoning, the gradual change of that tone, the rationale, the way he seduced his audience, the way he imprisoned that audience, penned them in, brought them along. It was such a lesson, I have to say. I had never understood, frankly how this had even happened, how people had accepted and allowed it. Now, I had a limited view into that world. It was frightening.
The destruction of newspapers, the loss of independently published and freely verifiable truths. Fake news, anyone?
“Don’t believe what you read, only believe me.” “Only I will tell you the truth.” “Let me do the thinking for you.” “Not a single pane of glass was broken.” “I stay awake at night, doubting myself, praying for the strength to guide you.”
Choosing an outside enemy, assigned as the source of all troubles.
“The others are our enemy! We must stamp them out; keep them out. I will protect you from the wicked others.” “God is with us.”
It was sounding all too familiar. It scared me, frankly.
But, I digress.
I located the key points of these speeches and replicated them inside a persuasive speech inside Professor Red’s world. I think it works.
Then I delete those translated speeches from my computer. Shudder.
Never again. Please, never again. Rage against it if you see it. Never let that happen again.
As of this printing, I have no excerpt of Book Three, Deadly Messenger to give you a sneak peek. I am working on Deadly Messenger as I write this, with a target publishing date of spring, 2019. It is a huge endeavour, with a lot to bring home to tie it all up and I want to do it justice. I owe it to you, my readers. When it’s finished and published, I will then add in an excerpt from Deadly Messenger in future copies of Cursed Apprentice.
Thank you so much for picking up my books. It is my honor that you read my work.
ALSO BY R R ROBERTS
Earth Survives Series:
Book One: Lost Sentinel
Book Two: Cursed Apprentice
Book Three: Deadly Messenger
MORE EARTH SURVIVES STORIES
To join R. R. Roberts Reader’s Group, go to, or click
https://www.rrroberts.com/ReadersGroup
Because I love my Reader’s Gr
oup, I’ve written some Earth Survives side stories, just for your eyes.
Read Shattered Trust.
You can down load a free copy here.
Read The Preppers Were Right.
You can down load a free copy here.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
R.R. Roberts lives in Northern Canada, shares a home with brilliant humans, and cats and dogs who are almost human. They are, of course, brilliant as well. ;-)
Much of D.O.A. is set on R R’s family off-the-grid acreage along the Peace River. The names of local towns have been changed to protect the guilty….
Please visit www.rrroberts.com
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Books by R. R. Roberts:
Acknowledgments
Contents
1. Payton’s Escape
2. Arrival
3. Three Weeks In …
4. Three Months In …
5. Friends in Low Places
6. The Sweep
7. Right Place, Right Time
8. Outlanders: Day One: WEN 2047
9. Mike: Year Two: WEN 2037
10. Outlanders: Day Two: WEN 2047
11. Mike: Year Three: WEN 2038
12. Indies: Day Three: WEN 2047
13. Mike: Year Four: WEN 2039
14. Indies: Day Four: WEN 2047
15. Mike: Year Five: WEN 2040
16. Indies: Day Five: WEN 2047
17. Mike: Year Six: WEN 2041
18. Indies: Day Six: WEN 2047
19. Mike: Year Seven: WEN 2042
20. Indies: Day Seven: WEN 2047
21. Mike: Year Eight: WEN 2043
22. Indies: Day Eight: WEN 2047
23. Mike: Year Nine: WEN 2044
24. Indies: Day Nine: WEN 2047
25. Mike: Years Ten & Eleven: WEN: 2045/46
Cursed Apprentice (Earth Survives Book 2) Page 46