Halfkinds Volume 1: Contact

by Vu, Andrew

  After I make my modifications, I put the panel back in place and fire up the console. The graphical interface appears to me and it boots up. The artificial intelligence then speaks.

  “System failure, going into automatic shutdown mode,” it says. “Security programs will deactivate in five minutes.”

  It works! A timer then appears on the screen. I guess they give a five minute buffer in case someone wants to manually turn the security programs back on. So now I wait until I can enter the grounds.

  During the five minutes, the console has computing capabilities, meaning I can use it to enter the infospace. With some time to kill, I decide why not. I open a new window and use the graphical interface to move some windows around. With my hands, I guide the display in front of me and open a browser.

  Although I am not as technically gifted as some of my brothers and sisters, I am good enough to browse the space. It’s easy enough. Once a window is popped open, simply enter your query and all this information pops up. The infospace has been around as long as intelligent animals have, probably longer. In its infancy, it was called the internet, but now the moniker has evolved to the infospace. I guess it’s to emphasize the size of it. I heard back then you actually had to wait to open up browser pages and that it would take multiple queries, or searches as they called it, to find what you really wanted. They even had to remember web addresses. I can’t imagine living in a time like that. Now, all you have to do is ask a question and ninety nine percent of the time, the results you’re looking for get to you in a flash. Thank God for modern tech.

  There’s still about two minutes left and what I want to investigate is our next move. Tiago mentioned using the teleporters to connect to the Moon via a stop at San Francisco, but he might want to know some information about the teleporter stations around here. I use a quick query to get the locations of all the local teleporters near our hideout. The infospace returns information on two stations, the Li and Gonzalez stations. I wonder which one Tiago plans to lead us to? The Gonzalez one is closer to our hide out, it’s probably that one.

  Tiago and the others would no doubt need to know this, so I decide to retrieve the information. A few seconds later, a data cube pops out from the console.

  “Security programs shut down,” the computer says, breaking my thoughts.

  It’s time to go, but before I do I take some time to scan the warehouse, to get the locations of the items I plan to grab. I use the console to do an inventory search and I take note of where the food, insta-items, clothes, and other things are. I take the floor plans that Candy has handed to me and mark the locations on my map. The list has been double checked and I take one last look at it to make sure I have the rundown. I then climb up the ladder and open the grating that leads to the warehouse floor. It’s lighter than the grating outside, making it much easier for me to remove.

  I get above surface, put the grating back on the hole, and take a look around. There are boxes piled sky high.

  “Crap, how am I going to sort through all this stuff?” I ask myself. “I didn’t expect this place to be so crowded. I thought it was a small supply depot.”

  Digging through them might be more difficult than I thought. But it shouldn’t be that much of a problem. After all I had done thus far, I feel a new sense of confidence that I have never felt before. I knew I could achieve, I just needed the opportunity to do it.

  But then, my eyes go back to floor level and I see two figures in the shadows. The light from the Moon shines through a window on the wall, and from the darkness they step through it. A wolf and a gorilla appear before me, wearing militaristic uniforms. The wolf doesn’t look too armed, he has some odd looking helmet headset combo on him and some kind of box on his front leg, but the gorilla looks menacing. The main thing I notice is his very big gun.

  These must have been the animals that killed Leonard, these must be the animals that are after us.

  “Stop right there,” the gorilla says. I’m surprised because his human speech is very good for a different species. I understand him clearly.

  I tense up and put my hand on my tote. I remember the explosives that Tiago had given to me and wonder if I should use them. It’s too early, and I am seriously outgunned, so I wait for them to speak again.

  “Drop the bag,” the gorilla instructs me. I do not.

  “Who are you?” I ask. “Are you here to kill me?”

  The wolf then speaks. “Yes. On orders of the United Species Alliance, straight from the leaders.”

  A part of me is shocked. This was a direct order from the top of the top of the United Species Alliance. I knew they were involved in some scope, but I didn’t think the big bosses were involved. This is larger than I imagined. The world really is after us.

  Suddenly, without warning, the gorilla props his gun up from his arms and aims it at me. I only have a few fractions of a second to react, so I dash to the side, reaching for cover behind a stack of boxes.

  I hear a deafening blast echo behind me, causing items to fly everywhere. The force from it sends me flying headfirst and I use my arms to break my fall forward. Dust and debris rise and it becomes hard to see. I am little discombobulated, but uninjured.

  The boxes don’t provide much to hide behind, but since there are so many of them, they keep me hidden. I quickly get to my feet and hide behind another one as I try to figure out where my pursuers went after the first shot.

  “Damnit, I missed!” I hear the gorilla shout. I realize that they’re not far and that my only option is to bolt out of here. The supplies would have to wait if I want to live.

  I start running towards where I think the entrance is, knocking down piles of boxes that stand in my way. Unfortunately, my sprint is a dead giveaway and another shot from the gorilla’s massive gun comes hurdling my way. It once again misses about three feet from me, but it’s still enough to knock me off my toes and cause another rain of supplies.

  Once again, I am disoriented, but I hear the footsteps of the two coming my way. I look around to see if there’s anything I can use as a weapon. I still have my bomb, but now is not the best time to use it unless I wanted to blow myself up in the process.

  Luckily, though, fate intervenes. I see a button on a nearby pole that says conveyor switch. I’m not one hundred percent sure, but I believe it turns on the machinery in this room and might provide a good enough distraction for me. I dash to it and press the button.

  The machinery starts to run. Boxes move and the warehouse becomes noisy from the echoes of gears and devices.

  “He’s turned it on!” I hear faintly hear the gorilla say. “I can’t hear shit.”

  Not wasting an instant of time, I make my way to the exit, bulldozing anything in my way. I don’t care about the noise I make, I just need to get out.

  I see it, the chain link fence with the word ‘exit’ marked on top. Never in my life do I feel so relieved to see a sign. I might not have what I came for, but at least I’m going to make it out alive.

  Or so I thought. Something jolts me from the side. Feathers poof into the atmosphere. I fall to my right and tumble on the ground face first. Instinctively, I try to get back up, using my arms for balance. But as I lift myself up, my arm suddenly has a strong stinging sensation, like someone has pinched me. I collapse and once again my body hits the floor. I roll over, face up, and I reach my right arm over to my left, where the pain comes from.

  To my surprise, a dark, thick liquid covers my hands. It is my own blood. I look to the left, the direction the blow came from. It is the wolf. His helmet protrudes a barrel that is smoking.

  The gorilla rushes over.

  “Nice shot!” he says to the wolf. “It’s a good thing we decided to split up. Now let’s end this.”

  I look directly into the eyes of the wolf. They are cold and empty. I sense that he has no satisfaction in what he is doing, but from his lack of emotion, I know he is going to kill me.

  But I will not go down like that. I reach in my
bag for the bomb and press on the trigger. I hear a high screeching noise, take it out, and throw it in their direction. I then jump as far away as I can.

  Time freezes. I hear the explosive hitting the ground, the bellow of the gorilla yelling to move. And as quickly as I threw it, I hear an ear shattering boom behind me.

  This is the third time I have been knocked down this evening. The gorilla’s shots barely moved me, but this bomb flings me clear across the room. The force throws me directly into a wall, back first. It feels like someone has slammed me with a sledgehammer.

  I lay on the ground, bones probably broken from my encounter with the wall. Everything on my body is sore, my legs, back, arms and head. I look at my arms and legs and see that they are bleeding, but at this point, I can’t even locate where my wounds are. I see that they are painted with a thick coat of dark red. I touch my head and I feel the same thing.

  I guess it’s the adrenaline, because under normal circumstances, I would have been out cold. But things are visible, I can still see, and what I see is a large cloud of smoke in the air. Everything in my field of vision is dusty. I don’t see the gorilla or the wolf either, nor do I hear them.

  “Did I kill them?” I say to myself. But before I could even continue speaking, something trickles from the smoke. They’re bright and blue, like a neon light. They’re also small, and bounce on the ground toward my direction. They look like little spheres of lights.

  “What is that?” I ask.

  And then suddenly, I am flung from the ground again. The little blue spheres burst in front of me with violent aggression. Each explosion is like a tiny bomb and the collective of them sends me into the air and tears up my body. I feel things that I have never felt before, cuts so deep that it feels like something is eating at my flesh. Things I had control over suddenly do nothing. I try to move my fingers as I hit the ground, but I have none.

  My body falls to the floor, and I know that pieces of me are gone. I cough as smoke and fumes enter my lungs. My vision is fuzzy, my ears are ringing, and I look down to my waist and see that my right leg is gone. My left hand has disappeared too, replaced by a stump that oozes out red liquid. My feathers, once glistening and healthy are now charred and burnt. My body is in agony, but the shock and adrenaline make it hard to focus on any one part. I am literally smoking.

  There’s nothing left to feel. I have failed. I came this close to being good enough, to being the guy who my family could depend on, but success evades me even until death.

  I see the wolf emerging from the cloud of smoke, the barrel from his helmet still out and pointed at me. I hear him say something, and I’m not clear what it is. It sounds like fire, but it doesn’t matter anymore. It’s the last thing I hear. Seconds after the wolf speaks, I feel a jolt hit my head. An incredible pain occurs, like my skull is collapsing on itself. Everything turns black.

  Looks like I didn’t have what it takes.

  Chapter 10 – Oscar Lawton - Leaders

  November 16, 3040 10:45 PM

  It’s been a little over an hour since Lombardi left on his quest for supplies. He should’ve been back by now.

  I am worried about my brother. He isn’t strong like the rest of us. He’s slower than the runners in our family, and can barely lift half the weight that I’ve seen Alex or Curtis press. He’s no genius like Candy, either. But I can see why he volunteered. He wants to prove himself and who am I to brush off his request? He probably isn’t the best among us, but I believe in him. He is my brother and I know he won’t let us down.

  Some of the others aren’t like me. They don’t have faith and this attitude is broadcasted by the likes of Tiago. We’ve never really seen eye to eye, Tiago and I. While he wants to dictate his commands to the group with an iron fist, I see the value of compassion. You can’t scare people into doing things for you, especially your own family members. We both hold the heavy burden of being the leaders among my brothers and sisters, but the way we handle things are worlds apart.

  Being the two oldest siblings is always a big responsibility, but being the two oldest in a family on the run is even harder. My little brothers and sisters look up to Tiago and me for direction and, so far, the struggle for leadership has been difficult with someone like him to bang heads against.

  When we first decided to leave home, I agreed with him, but unwillingly. It was a decision that I didn’t want to make, but I felt the pressure from my siblings and I agreed to make the call. But I knew Leonard wouldn’t follow us quietly. Mother and he were inseparable. It was like we were practically asking, no, demanding, him to amputate one of his limbs. Even though he agreed on the surface, I knew he had doubts, but I didn’t know that he would act on them.

  When Ace came back with the news, I was devastated. I played a part that lead to his death and that will stay with me for the rest of my life. We should have been more sensitive, I should have spoken for him, but I didn’t. He is dead because I failed to lead.

  The more and more Tiago shouts his orders, the less control I feel I have. I wasn’t even aware of his grand scheme to go to the Moon when I should have been. I knew we’d eventually have to make a run somewhere else. We couldn’t live in this building forever, but things happened so fast that I didn’t have the time to formulate our next move.

  When he told us his plans, I was caught off guard. I thought we would coordinate everything together, that no decisions would be made without each other’s blessing. And then he goes and announces to everyone that the Moon would be our final destination. He didn’t even hint his idea to me. I was as surprised as everyone else.

  I didn't and still don’t, like his proposal. It’s far too risky. He thinks we can waltz into a teleporter, hitch a ride to San Francisco, and make it to the Moon? What about security, what about actually using a teleporter?

  I normally don’t doubt that he hasn’t considered these issues, but the way he’s been acting the last few days gives me major concerns. Tiago has never struck me as a compassionate person, but he’s been too cold, even for him. When mother died, he didn’t flinch an inch. No remorse, no pain, no emotion. And when news of Leonard’s death reached us, he was already making preparations. Most of my brothers and sisters were struck with grief, not him.

  Most of them at least. Tiago has his entourage and they look up to him for guidance and direction. They emulate what he does and obey his every command. And in that sense, they dominate my other brothers and sisters.

  You have Alex, Tiago’s bodyguard, brutish, with the durability of a tank. He is Tiago’s muscle. Then you have Ace, Mr. Covert Operations. He can be in your proximity, and you’d never know it thanks to his speed and grace. He is not mentally gifted, but his ability to walk unnoticed sure makes up for it.

  Finally, there’s Curtis. I’ve known him all my life and I still don’t know much about him. He hangs in Tiago’s circle, but he rarely says a word. On the outside, he looks like a monster. Long, sharp teeth, tough as nails scales, and the bug eyes of a reptile. He has a prehensile tail that sticks out of his back and razor sharp claws. Yet, when I dig past his physical appearance, he does not strike me as a killer. He looks sad most of the time, like living in this world brings him great agony, and this was before we were on the run. He could probably match up with Alex in a fight on any given day, yet he mopes around behind him. And he’s an amazingly oversensitive individual. Sometimes, the slightest insult is enough to pierce his psyche. I don’t understand how someone so strong can be so weak.

  Yet, despite his mental frailty, Tiago shelters him. Perhaps Tiago still sees a use for his physical gifts, despite what he lacks in his confidence. Having two bodyguards is better than one.

  I always feel that when it comes to leaders, I have to speak for the rest of us who won’t stand up to Tiago and his gang. We are brothers and sisters, but that does not mean we are shielded from the politics that every group must face. Those who aren’t in Tiago’s entourage don’t fall in line with his militant command of style. Candy h
as always been more interested in learning than in following. I can’t say she’s a devotee of Tiago exactly, but I do know that he respects her intelligence. We all do.

  The twins are also a neutral party. The only ones they really stick with are each other. But for the most part, they get along with everyone. Just as Tiago respects Candy’s intelligence, he sees value in the twins’ intuition and empathy. They seem to know things we don’t.

  The rest of the family members are the ones I have to lead. They are the weaker ones: Maddie, Lombardi, and Leonard. Tiago and his cronies would be so cruel to them when we grew up. He used to bully them, tease them, steal their things, and whenever they tried to fight back, it wasn’t him they had to face, but the clique. I always stuck up for them whenever it happened. I wasn’t afraid of Tiago. I was bigger than him, bigger than most of them. I would go toe to toe with Alex if needed. Bears are juggernauts in their kingdom. Behemoth in size and swift in speed. And when we were growing up, I grew and grew and grew. None of them can take me.

  I feel it is my responsibility to help those weaker than me. Maddie, Lombardi, and Leonard didn’t have a choice in what God gave them. Maddie’s cow DNA means she is clumsy, slow and lethargic. But she is also sweet and kind. I admire her for that. While the others live in a world that is harsh and cruel, Maddie lives in one that I wish I could be in, a place that doesn’t know the brutal realities I see. I will always protect her from it, no matter what happens.

  But it’s funny how some people react when they need saving. Leonard sought mother’s protection, Maddie looked to me, and Lombardi, he kept coming back to Tiago for more. I guess sometimes you don’t want to be saved by someone else, it’s a rather shaming thing. But I didn’t care, I just wanted to help.