by Rohan Healy
Miles looked up at Tyler, who had turned his back and begun to walk away, his face twisted and contorted with rage, his eyes burning like cinders and his skin now coloured a bright pink hue.
“Don’t do anything crazy Miles,” Clark begged and he reached out to place his arms on Miles in order to restrain him, but it was already too late. Miles leapt to his feet and began walking furiously toward Tyler as the rest of the sector looked on in anticipation. To his left Miles spotted a glass vase sitting atop a colleague’s desk with a single big red flower inside. The vase was shaped like a three dimensional rectangle and was very thick indeed. Without breaking his stride Miles swiped it with his left hand, much to the bemusement of the owner of the cubicle. He then transferred it to his dominant right hand and tipped it upside down. The flower and the water fell to the ground soaking the carpet and making a distinctive sploshing sound, attracting the attention of Tyler who turned to see what was going on. Miles was only four steps away from Tyler who had now stopped to turn around. Tyler spotted Miles and began to speak, but before Tyler could utter the words “What the F…” Miles raised the heavy vase in his right hand and brought it crashing down onto the bridge of Tyler’s, no longer, straight nose.
Tyler fell to the floor and slumped against a white cubicle partition as blood began to spurt profusely from the wound and out of his nostrils onto the bright white carpet. There was complete silence for a moment, when suddenly, a woman screamed, and then another, and yet another until the entire office erupted into a cacophony of frantic shouting and hollering. Tyler’s friends, so brave only moments ago while laughing at a crying man, now stood frozen in place, a look of total shock on their pale faces. Miles stood there seething, growling like an animal, the bloodied vase still held tight in his right hand, no longer in control of himself. Clark had by this time made his way over to the scene and placed a gentle hand on Miles’ shoulder in order to calm him down. Miles turned and barked incoherently at Clark, who recoiled in fear. Hundreds of workers hurried to and fro, still screaming and panicking in the large, densely populated open plan office. In the distance Miles spotted a group of four Enforcers, their human bodies clad in black robotic armour, slowly pushing past panicked people and making their way toward him, their faces protected by heavy black masks and their electrified pacification rods fully extended. Even in his out of control state Miles knew that this wasn’t good, that he was in a whole lot of trouble. His reasoning abilities started to come back slowly and he began to consider exactly what he should do next, but before he could snap out of his rage altogether the image of his wife Hellen appeared in his mind’s eye.
“We’re through, our marriage is over. We’re through, our marriage is over. We’re through, our marriage is over. We’re through, our marriage is over. We’re through, our marriage is over”
She repeated these words over and over, her face becoming more sinister and monstrous with every repetition. And then she was joined in this imagining by Tyler who placed his arm around her, looked directly at Miles, smirked and said, “you lose again Miles, haha!”
And with this Miles let out a blood curdling shriek that silenced the room and stopped even The Enforcers in their tracks monetarily. Miles lifted the vase once more and began repeatedly striking the unconscious Tyler on the face, head and body. The once handsome Tyler no longer existed, he was replaced instead by a mess of pulpy red matter that was totally unrecognisable. Clark, Tyler’s cohorts and the other nearby co-workers recoiled in horror at the scene unfolding before them, some of them becoming physically sick at the sight. Those who’d lived their lives exclusively in Elissa’s affluent Green Districts had very little exposure to physical violence and so were much more horrified by the sight of blood and beatings than those who inhabit the Yellow or Red Districts. As Miles continued to pound unrelentingly on the limp body of Tyler Riggs, The Enforcers picked up the pace, breaking into a sprint across the office. Their crackling voices could be heard through their masks.
“*beep*. Prepare to pacify target, *beep*,” said the largest of the four, who appeared to be the squad leader. “*beep*. Do not use lethal force, pacify only, charge for stun shock, *beep*.”
“*beep*. YES SIR, *beep*,” the others shouted in unison.
By this time Miles, exhausted from lifting the heavy vase was barely striking Tyler’s bloodied body with any real force. Kneeling beside Tyler and covered in blood Miles wept and moaned as realisations, not only of the fact that his wife had left, but of the terrible act he had committed while in an uncontrollable rage began to dawn on him.
“I’m sorry,” he sobbed,“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry…”
Miles slumped down onto the unmoving body of Tyler Riggs and wept furiously, blubbering like a baby. The Enforcers finally reached the gory scenario, and without any hint of emotion they surveyed the scene before them.
“*beep*. Unit three, take the target down, *beep*,” growled the large Enforcer.
“*beep*. YES SIR, *beep*,” replied another Enforcer with a large number 3 on his black armoured chest plate. And with that The Enforcer raised his rod, sparks arching and jumping frenetically along the thin, but strong steel pole. The rod came crashing down upon Miles’ back and his body convulsed violently as it made contact, his screams of pain startling the pigeons perched outside, into panicked flight across the Elissan skyline.
And everything went dark.
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Chapter 2
Miles slowly opened his heavy eyelids and squinted in pain at the bright light that shone down on him from above. Miles raised his right hand to shield his eyes and in doing so caught a glimpse of the dried blood encrusted on his palm. He turned his hand over to reveal yet more of the, now brown and hard, blood. It looked, Miles thought to himself, as though someone had dipped his hand in a tin of russet hue paint and left it to dry overnight. All at once it hit him, like a bolt of lightning, why his hand was brown, what he had done. ‘Oh my God, I’m a murderer, I’m a God damn murderer, and everyone saw it. I killed Tyler and…and…’ a terrifying realisation suddenly dawned on Miles as he began to understand the true weight of his action. Like all serious crime on Carthage, murder was punishable by a sentence of banishment to the volatile moon world of Gyaros.
‘No, no this can’t happen, I’m a normal guy, I’m a Green Districts guy! I’ve never been outside the Green Districts for God’s sake! They can’t send me to Gyaros, they just can’t!’ Miles sat up abruptly from his previous position of lying flat on his back and in doing so he let out an ear piercing screech. Miles writhed in pain and held his back at the location where The Enforcer had struck him with his rod. Slowly and painfully he managed to sit up on the padded white bench where he had awoken, and his eyes, having adjusted to the light, began to scan the room where he now found himself.
“Where am I?” he said softly to himself as he surveyed the scene. Miles was sitting on the single piece of furniture in what was an otherwise completely empty room. The bench he woke up on, and was now perched upon, protruded directly from the wall. The walls were entirely white and appeared to be made of the same padded material as the bench. The room was featureless except for the subtle outline of what looked to be a door to Miles’ right. On the door, at about head height was a small black screen roughly eight inches wide and six inches high. As well as this a small white camera poked down from the centre of the ceiling, it pointed directly at Miles’ face and a red light blinked just off to the left of its lens. Miles tilted left and watched as the camera mimicked his movements perfectly, never taking its focus off Miles’ face. He then leaned to the right and observed again how the camera would swivel and follow his every move.
‘Oh shit, I know what this is…’ Although Miles had never been in this kind of situation before, having never been in any kind of trouble at all until today, thanks to references in films and on visor vision Miles had a pretty good idea of what was going on. ‘This is a holding cell, I’ve seen t
hese before. This must be The Security Department right? A-and this is where the bad guys get dragged off to when they’ve committed a crime…and, and then they get sent off to fucking Gyaros! Oh God, oh God, oh God, how can this be happening to me?!’
Miles buried his face in his hands and began to weep again as his stomach knotted and churned, weakness and shaking once again taking over his entire body. As Miles continued to cry he heard the faint sound of distant footsteps. He froze, his eyes fixed on the screen on the wall to his right, his ears straining to hear. ‘They’re getting closer,’ he thought, ‘and…and it sounds like two people, at least two, there’s no way that’s a single person.’
The footsteps grew louder and louder, drawing nearer and nearer until they stopped suddenly, right outside the cell. Miles daren’t move a muscle as silence pervaded the room, his pounding heart the only sound audible to him. Sweat had been forming on his brow since the footsteps began and one or two beads were now creeping their way down his cold, pale face. Then with a loud crackle the screen flickered to life and the matte black helmet of an Enforcer could be seen on the distorted display.
“*beep*. Miles Stanton, stand before the screen, *beep*,” ordered the crackly voice of The Enforcer. The terrified Miles jumped to his feet, bearing the pain in his back, and made his way to the screen to his right. Miles stood up as straight as he could considering his injuries and, too afraid to speak, awaited further instruction.
“*beep*. The boss wants a word with you, *beep*,” and with that The Enforcer took a step to his left and the familiar face of The Lead Manager of The Energy Department, Candice Demour, took his place. Candice and Miles had always gotten on well, Candice was kind and fair wherever she could be, but had the strength and decisiveness required to oversee the entire workings of The Energy Department. An attractive lady in her late 40’s, Candice had straight light brown hair, dark almond shaped eyes and a thin, but not overly angular face. She possessed a famous smile that could ease just about any situation. Except for this one. Candice was not smiling today, today Candice looked tired and melancholy.
Despite the horrific circumstances he found himself in, Miles couldn’t help but feel a little relieved to see a friendly and familiar face. Candice began to speak, sorrowfully.
“Miles, I’m glad to see you’re ok. I watched the incident via the recorded camera feed, I…I don’t know what to say, I’ve never seen anything like it,” Candice’s voice began to crack but she quickly regained her composure, cleared her voice and continued, “Miles, Tyler is alive…barely.”
Miles’ heart jumped and his eyes widened.
“Tyler is alive!? Oh thank God, you can’t imagine how good that news is, my God Candice, I…I thought I was a murderer,” Miles spluttered shaking with excitement and adrenaline, “I thought that was it for me you know? Shipped off to Gyaros, never be able to see Chet grow up, never get to see Hellen again, to leave my Chet known as the son of a murderer. Oh God Candice, just…I,” Miles once again broke down and rubbed tears from his eyes.
“Yes, about that Miles, the doctors say Tyler will make it but…he won’t be the same. What you did to his face, I can’t even…” Candice trailed off then shook her head and started again, “you won’t be going to Gyaros Miles, because of me,” Miles looked up quizzically.
“Because of you? What do you mean?”
“The Areopagus wanted to shuttle you tonight but I pulled some strings. I’ve known you a long time Miles and you’re not a bad man. You wouldn’t last one second on that rock, it’s as good as a death sentence. No Miles you won’t be banished to Gyaros but…” Candice stopped suddenly and looked to the floor. Miles waited a few seconds before his patience ran out.
“But what?!” he barked.
“Miles, even I can’t keep you here, at The Energy Department. Your contract has been terminated, your benefits have been revoked and your pension credits have been allocated to be used for Tyler’s treatment, reconstructive surgery and rehabilitation. I’m sorry Miles, I know you didn’t mean to do what you did but there’s nothing I can do to keep you here,” Candice tilted her head slightly, a pained expression on her face as she witnessed the destruction of an old friend in real time before her eyes.
Miles stood there silent and motionless, his world falling apart like a train crash in slow motion. And then, while staring at the ground, in a low voice he began to speak.
“Hellen left me today, she’s been seeing Tyler without my knowledge. She messaged me to tell me that divorce proceedings had begun, and that I was no longer welcome in my house, my own damn house Candice. And now my job, Candice I’m nothing without my wife and child, I’m nothing without my work,” Miles looked up and made eye contact, “Candice I’ve built this life, ever since I can remember I’ve been building this life, you can’t take it away, this life is Miles Stanton.” Miles placed his hands either side of the screen, “Candice I don’t know what’s left when you take away my job, my wife, my child, my house. You tell me, what is left!? What the fuck is left of Miles Stanton now!?”
Miles’ still bloody hands slid down the wall lifelessly, he cut the figure of an utterly defeated man.
“I’m sorry Miles. I don’t know what’s left of you, all I know is that while you are alive on Carthage there is hope, I know that you can start again slowly. You’re a good man Miles, of all the things that changed today, that is not one of them. In time you will rise from this. But for tonight you will be escorted to a hotel where you will sleep and get cleaned up. You will be kept under Enforcer supervision to ensure that you do not try to hurt Tyler, Hellen or Chet…”
“But I would never…”
“I know that Miles but it doesn’t matter, the Areopagus’ orders are final. In the morning you will be escorted to The Department of Productivity where you will be allocated a new place of employment. You must understand that after what you did, you will not be granted permission to work in the Green Districts but if you behave, and work hard you may one day make it back up here. I’m sorry Miles, it breaks my heart to see you like this. Just get some rest tonight and take things one day at a time. I believe in you, you’re a good man Miles, a good man.”
The screen flickered and went blank. Candice’s concerned face still visible in Miles’ mind. The footsteps of Candice and The Enforcer could be heard walking away from the cell, and as they grew more distant they were replaced by a second pair of footsteps this time coming toward the cell. These new footsteps grew louder until it was apparent they had stopped outside the cell door.
Miles, unable or unwilling to budge, had not moved from his location in front of the door, and jumped in fright as the locking mechanism clicked suddenly. There was a loud buzz and an automated female voice could be heard saying, “cell door seventeen, open.”
The pale white door slid open accompanied by a hydraulic hiss, and tucked itself into the cell wall to its left. Miles looked up to see two Enforcers clad, as always, in black. Their batons and firearms clearly visible, and extremely intimidating.
“*beep*. Are you Miles Stanton? *beep*,” asked the taller of the two Enforcers.
“Yes I am,” replied Miles, wearily.
“*beep*. Please verify, *beep*.” The large Enforcer held out a data pad, Miles placed his palm on the screen and waited for the scan to complete.
“Verification complete,” spoke a robotic voice from the small speaker on the data pad, “Subject: Miles Stanton. Status: Under Areopagus Custody”. The Enforcer placed the pad in a large hip pocket and began to speak.
“*beep*. You’ll be coming with us. We will escort you to a place of accommodation in the South West Yellow District designated by the Areopagus. We will perform personal surveillance for the first night. In the morning we will escort you to The Department of Productivity where you will be designated a new employment placement, *beep*.” As the taller Enforcer spoke the shorter of the two took Miles by the arm and coerced him out of the cell. The three of them began a long walk down the bright w
hite hallway. To his left Miles watched as they passed by cell after cell identical to the one he had awoken in just minutes ago. To his right, behind a thick pane of glass, appeared the sparkling sight of Elissa’s night time sky line. Beams of different coloured light shot out from the tops of the city’s most prominent corporate and banking buildings, not least The Carthage Corp Headquarters. Elissa’s most striking monument was The Carthage HQ’s tall white pyramid structure, which half way up, sprouted a round glass ring that locals referred to as the donut. The ring, it was said, represented the unification of the entire planet, once known as Medea, under The Carthage Corporation at the end of The War of Unification sixty one years ago in which The Talos Corporation was defeated. The sun had set and the city’s complex monorail system was at full capacity as department workers made their way home to their families. ‘How long had I been knocked out?’ thought Miles as he was escorted out of The Security Department. He could see people socialising on the high rise balconies of Elissa’s most financially well off Green District, Panacea, and he watched them, enviously, swimming and laughing with not a care in world.
As the trio stepped into an elevator The Enforcer continued speaking in his emotionless and distorted voice, “*beep*. All public and private data network access has been revoked until further notice. Any attempt to log in will fail and your attempt will be recorded and flagged by the chief security A.I. Your biometrics and services chip will be placed on high visibility, if you attempt to locate your wife or child you will be tracked and shuttled off world without trial. If you attempt to cross over into the Green Districts you will be tracked and shuttled off world without trial, *beep*,” The Enforcer finished, and looked down toward Miles.