by JN Chaney
“But you said they only use these things in emergencies,” said John. “So why are they active?”
“Maybe they kick on when the power goes out,” said Terry.
“I don’t think so,” said Mei. “The solar panels are still working. See? They’re moving.”
Sure enough, Mei was right. The angle of the panels had changed in the short amount of time they’d been standing around. They seemed to be following the sun.
“I think,” continued Mei, “this experiment of theirs needed all the power it could get. I think it still does.”
“You mean it’s sucking power from both the panels and the coils?” asked Terry.
“I bet it takes a lot of energy to keep their crazy experiment running. Remember how they only wanted it to last three minutes? Maybe these…” she looked at the pad. “Maybe these fever killers are the reason why.”
“You said there was public backlash over their use,” said Terry. “Makes sense there’d be a time limit.”
“Exactly,” she said. “But before they could shut it off, the gas stopped them.”
“Everything you’re saying is a guess,” said Alex. “You’ve got no clue about any of it.”
Mei gave him a nasty look. “If you’ve got a better idea, let’s hear it.”
He bit his lip, twisting it in his teeth, and stared at her, a contemplative look on his face. But before he had a chance to say anything, Terry answered for him. “We’ll know more once we’re inside,” he said. “Let’s get going.”
The rage on Alex’s face faded, but not completely. Never completely.
They soon entered the field, following the road. As they passed along the rows of panels, several spots of color appeared near the glass. At first, Terry dismissed them, assuming they were nothing more than broken equipment. But the farther they went, the more abundant the piles became.
John took it upon himself to investigate. He retrieved a clump of the material, which came apart in his hands. It looked like crystals or jewels.
“It’s ice,” said Mei.
“But it’s red and blue,” said John.
Terry took off his glove and felt the cold frost on his bare skin. “She’s right, but I’ve never seen ice like this.”
“Out of everything Variant’s changed, I like this the most,” said Mei.
They kept moving, steadily pushing forward, and it wasn’t long before they found their destination, a lone building high atop the hill. Seemingly oblivious to time’s destructive hand, the facility was tall and wide, its windowed glass reflecting purple light.
“I can’t believe it,” said Mei, a dumbfounded expression on her face. “It looks brand new.”
“Looks aren’t everything,” said Terry.
The glass doors didn’t open, so John tried smashing through them with the butt of his rifle. They didn’t break, so he cautioned everyone to stand back. He fired at the door, cracking the glass, then kicked it several times until the whole sheet fell in.
“Fantastic,” said Mei.
They stepped through the opening and entered the building. The room wasn’t very wide—seven or eight feet at the most—but the walls seemed to go on forever. Every floor from the first to the last was visible from the foyer, each marked with large numbers, the farthest reading 12. A long desk lay at the center of the room, with the company name stretched across the wall: ORTEGO.
To the left of the desk lay a set of double doors, which easily swung open. There was no other way except to go through them, so they did. A musty wave of hot stink hit them immediately. John scurried to the window, coughing. Mei ran to him.
“Sorry,” wheezed John. “Breathed in at the worst time. What the hell is that smell?” He wiped his mouth.
“Dead people,” said Alex, calmly.
“What makes you think so?” asked Terry.
“Not a lot of exposure here. No rain getting in. No bad weather. The bodies are still here, probably mummified.”
“Gross,” said John.
Terry looked at Mei. She was rubbing John’s back. “You agree?”
She nodded.
He eyed John. “You good?”
“Yeah,” said John, standing. He pulled out a piece of cloth and wrapped it around his head to cover his mouth. He handed another strip to Mei. “I’m ready this time.”
Alex didn’t filter his mouth or nose. When John offered him a piece of torn shirt, he dismissed it. “I don’t need it. I’m used to it by now.”
“But it’s rancid,” said Mei.
“Maybe to you.” There was a swell of pride in his voice.
Terry didn’t find the smell unbearable, either, but he took the cloth, regardless. He liked to think his body was adjusting, but the truth was that he didn’t know. Then, Alex’s words repeated in his mind. I’m used to it.
Maybe I’m used to it, too, he thought, solemnly.
Then he opened the door.
Chapter 21
Amber Project File Logs
Play Audio File 215
January 10, 2347
NUBER: Are you going to tell her?
ROSS: I promised I would.
NUBER: But the transmission…you heard what Sarah said. Roland’s dead. The others are scattered. We still don’t know anything.
ROSS: We can’t keep secrets, Henry.
NUBER: All it’s going to do is hurt her. Hasn’t the poor woman been through enough?
ROSS: I can’t argue with you there, but we have an obligation to the truth. I won’t repeat my predecessor’s mistakes.
NUBER: I understand, but you should tell her we’re not giving up. The retrieval team is standing by. The second we get a signal from the kids, we’ll be on our way.
ROSS: If it comes to that, save a spot for me, will you?
NUBER: You’ll be the first one out the door.
End Audio File
January 10, 2347
The Surface
As they soon discovered, Alex was right.
Bodies littered the nearby offices, though the meat was mostly gone. Variant had the nasty habit of ripping the flesh apart so that it could no longer cling to the bone. It made it almost impossible to visually identify someone, especially since the face was the first thing to go. In any case, the building was full of corpses.
The end of the hall opened into a common area, with a few dozen tables scattered around, though several had been turned on their sides. Overhead, an arched glass pane filled the room with a natural dim light. Hanging signs pointed to different sections, such as the cafeteria, gym, and something called the creativity enhancement room.
Mei informed them the machine was on the ninth floor, so they found the stairwell near the back and started climbing.
When they finally arrived at the door and opened it, they found the place completely darkened. “Must not be any windows,” said John.
“You know what that means,” said Terry.
“Yeah, yeah,” said John. He unpacked the goggles. “You’re so lucky. Why couldn’t I be the one with the super eyes?” He sighed and fastened the straps.
“Don’t feel bad. At least you’ve got your dashing good looks,” said Mei. She snorted. “Oh, wait.”
“You’re a riot,” said John, stepping inside.
Terry held the door for the others. Mei followed next, a triumphant grin on her face.
Then, it was Alex’s turn. He started to walk in, but stopped a little shy of the door. “So it’s true,” he said to Terry.
“What’s true?”
“You’re changed,” Alex said. “I figured as much back in the tunnel, but I wasn’t sure.” He looked Terry up and down. “What else?”
“Else?”
“Variant gave you better eyes, but there’s gotta be more.”
Terry hesitated. He forgot Alex didn’t know. He should’ve put the goggles on and faked it. Now he had to lie again. “Nothing else,” he said, hesitantly.
Alex stared at him. “We’ll see,” he finally said, then went on.
Terry followed and shut the door. The room was pitch black, except for the cracks of light coming through the door they’d entered from.
Terry’s eyes adjusted almost immediately. There was a flash of black, but within seconds, the place came back alive in hues of blue light. He saw desks and computer terminals, glass walls separating offices and monitoring stations, sixty-inch televisions hanging overhead, and a few dozen bodies lying dormant on the floor. Halfway through the room, a massive railing stretched from one end to the other. When he drew closer, Terry could see the floor dropped a good ten feet, expanding into what appeared to be another area. The rail’s purpose became instantly clear.
Terry looked over the railing, surprised to only see a group of servers, each about three meters high, encased in glass. Behind them lay a console, which took up most of the back wall.
“Is this it?” asked John.
“Nope,” said Mei. She started descending the stairs to the server area. “But we have to go here first.” She went to the console and took out her pad, then removed her goggles and set them nearby.
John followed quickly behind her, but Terry and Alex stayed near the rail, watching overhead.
She examined the pad, which lit up most of the area she was standing in. She hovered over it for a moment, then turned her attention toward the console.
“What’s up?” asked John. “You need some help?”
“I’m looking for a switch. It’s kinda big, I think. Should be here somewhere...”
John peered around, his goggles still on. He walked to the far left side of the table. “This it?”
She grabbed the pad and ran to him. Angling the pad’s light, she examined the switch. “Yes!” she yelled, her voice echoing. “Okay, guys, get ready.” She grabbed hold of the lever, getting ready to push it forward, then stopped. “Oh, you might want to take those goggles off.”
A short moment later, Mei pulled the switch. There was a deep hum, vibrating the walls and floor, and finally the lights flickered on. Mei grabbed John’s arm and tugged him down as she jumped. “Yes! Who’s awesome? Right here!”
“Calm down, spaz,” said John.
“How’d you know the lights still worked?” Terry asked.
She smiled up at him. “I didn’t,” she said. “But I thought since the solar panels were still working, there was a chance. I didn’t want to say anything until I knew for sure, though.”
John put his goggles away. “I’m just glad the goggle phase of today was short lived.”
“Where to now?” Terry asked.
“There’s another set of doors behind you to the right. They lead to the main lab. You see them?”
“I do,” he said, looking behind him, but he also saw the dead body lying there, propping them open. Its bones, still clothed in rags and clumps of dried flesh, lay upon the tiled floor. The skeleton reached with clawed fingers. It must have been running when it died here, breathing fire into its lungs. Died without knowing the reason.
It was the same in the old videos. Everyone always ran in the end, when there was no other option and every plan had failed completely. On that day, every soul on the surface of the Earth had run, unified in fear. In place of reason, an evolutionary instinct had taken hold and forced a panic in their chest to make them move. If they’d thought it possible, they might have run into the open sea, tried their hand at growing gills and fins.
Then, somehow, through happy luck and circumstance, a handful of savages managed to survive, clinging to life like leeches on the back of a dead whale, sucking blood that wasn’t there. Even then, buried in the dirt and miles below the gas, the people never stopped running. It was why they had meddled in genetics; it was why they had insisted on creating hybrid children. They ran from the idea things could get back to the way they were before. They never thought they could stop the gas. Not really. Their only answer had been submission. Adaptability. But it was all the same thing—the same tired, old instinct that put one leg in front of another and pushed a man to run: the fear to stand and fight.
Today would be different. Today there would be no more compromising. No more frightened children going to the chamber. No more sacrificial lambs. They would stop it here, together, under their own terms, so that no one else would suffer for the sake of a broken world.
Today they would stop running.
*******
They found the observation deck, where Dr. Gideon watched the government officials die before his eyes. It was safely tucked behind a sheet of thick, protective glass, far above the lab. The nearby camera was still there, mounted on a table in the corner, surrounded by monitors. Above one of the monitors, there was a picture of a white duck with blue clothes. An inscription read, To all my favorite quacks, especially Jenny.
It was signed G.
Near the camera lay two bodies, which Mei insisted must be the officials. Their uniforms, if that’s what they were, looked like simple rags now, shriveled and cracked to pieces.
Through the glass, a massive chamber stretched in all directions, above and below. The place was ovular, like an egg, rising high through several floors. At its center, a long catwalk hung, leading from the observation deck to two smaller, thick translucent tubes.
John wiped the lens of the camera with his finger, then flicked the dust into the air. “It’s exactly like Gideon said. Hard to believe it hasn’t changed in all this time.”
“It’s changed,” said Mei. “Maybe none of the furniture’s been moved, but things are different.”
She was right. The decomposed bodies on the floor were proof enough of that. Even in a place like this, untouched by the elements, microscopic changes were still happening. Flesh decayed, skin flakes broke apart to form dust particles. Eventually, even the bones would be gone. In all corners of the world, time made memories of everyone.
“Let’s get to it,” said Terry.
Mei pointed to the end of the catwalk where the tubes lay. “That’s where it’s coming from,” she said. “The power’s down below. We have to fix it, then pull the switch up top to shut it down.”
“Why can’t we do it the easy way and cut the power?” asked John.
“We could, but we shouldn’t. It might cause problems. I think my plan is our best bet.”
“But you’re not sure,” said Terry.
“God, no,” she said. “I don’t know if this will work. I’m best guessing and that’s it.”
“Pretty good guesses so far,” said John.
“Most of it wasn’t a guess. This time I really don’t know what will happen. The only people who might are dead.”
“I’d take you over them any day,” said John.
She smiled.
There was a ladder at the far end of the observation deck which led to another catwalk. Once he made it down, it was easier to judge the scope of the room. The ceiling and the floor were at least a hundred yards apart. Terry was currently closer to the bottom, of course, but still nowhere near it.
Using Gideon’s instructions, they followed the catwalk to another section. It opened into a separate room full of servers and computer systems. “We need to reset the power cycle,” said Mei. “It’s one of the server boxes. Should be marked.”
Upon first glance, it seemed impossible to find anything. There were cables running all along the floor and into the walls. Nothing seemed to be marked. Even it were, dust had accumulated to the point you could hardly tell what was written on the box.
Terry made his way past the others, starting his search near the back. The room was quite long, more like a hallway than a server room—thin and cramped. Terry stepped over piles of junk, wondering how the hell these people had ever managed to get anything done. As he neared the latter half, he stopped to find that Alex had followed him.
“I need to talk to you,” said Alex, quietly.
Terry sighed i
nwardly. No doubt Alex was getting ready to criticize or lash out again. “Sure.”
Alex took him by the arm. “This is a waste of time.”
“Relax,” said Terry. “I know it’s a mess in here, but we’ll find it.”
“Junk’s not what I’m talking about. I mean this whole thing, fixing the world. It’s stupid, and you damn well know it.”
“I know you don’t think it’ll work, Alex, but we have to at least try. Sure, it might be a pipedream, but we’ll never know until we try.”
Alex sneered. “Oh, I get it now,” he said. “You have to put on a show, is that it?” He nodded in the direction of John and Mei, who were both wiping the dust off the sides of server boxes. “Can’t let the little kids down. I get it. Used to be the same for me with Cole. People look up to you now.” He leaned in close. “Don’t think I don’t know what’s going on with you, Terry. I’ve been paying attention. You’re changing, aren’t you? More than you were supposed to.”
“Everyone is. The gas does it to us, remember?”
“Don’t play dumb with me. You killed the rab in the tunnel, you healed overnight, and now you can see in the dark. You’d have to be blind not to see there’s something happening to you.”
“Even if that’s true, what do you care?”
“Let me ask you a question, Terry. Did you like who you were before? Do you even remember it? I do. I remember the little kid who was too small and pathetic to do anything by himself, had to get a little girl to stand up for him. What about you? You remember?”
Terry didn’t answer.
“Yeah, I thought so,” said Alex. “Now think about what’s going to happen when you go up there and shut that machine down.”
“It’ll save people. That’s what’ll happen.”
“And you’ll be weak again. A tiny, little baby kid crying for his mother. You looking forward to John protecting you like he used to? You’re stronger than he is now. You’re stronger than all of them.”
“It’s not worth the cost.”