s of Fantasy
Alpha Chronicle
By
Marion Chadwick Lanier
Copyright 2014 by Marion C. Lanier
All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced in any form, except for inclusion of brief quotations in review, without permission in writing from the author or publisher.
For Sarah
Your love, support, and patience mean everything.
Table of Contents
Introduction
SKILL
Between Myth and Legend
Mr. Giggles
Finding Heaven
Sweet and Sour
Homecoming
Resignation
Life After
Eater of Bones
Micro Fiction
Dragon Slayer
Hell’s Hatter
Mute Terror
A Small Mercy
Lost
Fear and Superstition
The Other Side of the Mirror
A Wish Granted
Faith and Logic
Homesick
Author’s Note
Introduction
This is a collection of my stories written across various platforms. I've gathered them from my personal blog and from One Minute Reads. Many of these stories were inspired participating in the Friday Phrases Event on Twitter. This rapid fire back and forth between writers, a spontaneous and chaotic whirlwind of creativity has helped deepen and stoke my brainstorming process. Besides all that, it's a whole lot of fun.
I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I did writing them.
SKILL
John Higgins lay on the table, a silver cable plugged into his brain.
“Update in progress. Please remain still. Brain damage, memory loss, and death can occur if the synchronization process is interrupted.”
The technician’s detached, mechanical voice made his skin crawl. She stood next to him, watching the progress on her handheld with dead eyes. Her badge named her Tiffany. She didn’t look much like a Tiffany. He had attempted conversation with the VISE technicians before, but they were always like this. Cold, humorless, devoid of personality.
The viewer in the corner replayed the news from the evening. The news anchor’s voice was fluid and charming. He might be just as dead inside as the VISE tech, but at least he acted like a person.
“Bill 826 was vetoed last week by President Conner, restricting SKILL chips from being used by the military. The High Council was in an uproar over the decision and even the Vice President seemed surprised by the outcome.”
That was a bloody mess. John had voted for Conner. The President had been good for the country and the economy, pulling them out of a 10 year decline. His critics said he was stubborn and old-fashioned and that argument was gaining ground. SKILL use was almost commonplace for most technical jobs.
Tiffany’s handheld beeped. Her hands moved quickly, fingers light on his skull. He felt a small twinge as she unplugged him.
“Firmware successfully upgraded. You may feel dizziness or nausea for the next few minutes. This is normal, as the SKILL system runs its routine checks to proper operation. Other side effects include blurred vision, flashing lights, and tinnitus. These symptoms should not persist longer than ten minutes. You are cleared to resume normal activities and SKILL use.”
Tiffany spoke with the excitement of one who had said the same words a thousand times. She gestured to her handheld.
“Please acknowledge that you understand and accept the terms and conditions…” Her voice fuzzed in his head, sounding like white noise. He shook his head quickly, trying to shake it off. She was staring at him blankly.
“I’m sorry, what did you say?”
She actually rolled her eyes at him. That was the most human reaction he had seen from her.
“Press your thumb here.”
She left without another word. John rubbed the metal port in his head where his SKILL chip was embedded. It tingled faintly. That was normal after an update as well. He stretched and flexed his fingers, walking to the door. He seemed to be done with the aftershocks.
John left the small waiting room. Guards nodded at him in the hall and opened the door to the prep room for him. Inside, his assistants waited in scrubs and masks. Behind them, lying naked on the table was the most powerful man on this side of the planet. President Frank Conner breathed the deep, steady rhythm of someone heavily sedated.
Conner required a pacemaker due to his heart condition. With the advent of SKILL, which doctor he used was less important than it once had been. John was young, with nimble fingers and the most up-to-date medical procedures and knowledge in his head. He was close to the capital and, probably more importantly, he had voted for the President.
“Are you ready, Dr. Higgins?”
He nodded and they scrubbed him down, pulling on his apron, gloves and surgeon’s mask. They took up their positions around him and the President.
“Let’s begin. Initiating procedure H-3201 on subject Frank Conner.”
He didn’t flinch anymore when his SKILL activated. A display appeared in his vision as the system scanned Conner’s body. Red lines appeared on the President’s body, showing him where to cut.
“Ten blade.” Cold steel pressed into his hand.
He put his hands on the man’s chest and felt the system lock him in place. John couldn’t draw a straight line on paper, but with SKILL he could perform intricate surgeries with perfect accuracy.
His body moved like a machine, following the instructions in front of him. It was little more than a complex game of connect the dots. One. Two. Three. Cut. Suction. Clamp.
More lines appeared as the next stage of the surgery updated. His hands moved by themselves. He entered into an almost trance like state when operating, very little thought or presence needed on his part. He was just a tool for the SKILL system to use and he relaxed, letting it do the job.
The nurses gasped.
He came back to himself and froze. He had the President’s heart in his hands… and had neatly sliced it in half.
“Doctor, what are you doing!?!”
The nurse was in shock. So was he. The other one ran for the door.
John tried to fix it, but his display showed warnings on the President’s heart. Irreparable. Fatal.
The guards stormed in, shouting, and pulled him away from the President.
He was numb, in shock. What just happened? What had he done?
They locked him in a tiny cell. VISE technicians came in, with their cold hands and dead eyes and removed his SKILL chip. They determined the chip was in perfect condition, the firmware and SKILL system operated as it should. They even installed it into a new surgeon who performed the same operation without incident. They accused him of murder.
John had no idea how long he was in that cell. Time had no meaning. He never saw a lawyer. He was never brought to court. Aside from the VISE techs and the staff that brought him his meager meals, he had no visitors. He waited to speak to someone, for a phone call, for something. It never came.
The small viewer in the corner played the news nonstop. He saw Vice President Grimes sworn in to office. He gave a memorable speech, recognizing President Conner’s service. People cheered. Grimes shook hands and waved. He signed Bill 826 into law, granting military the authorization to use SKILL chips. There was a close-up of Grimes shaking hands with VISE Executive, Ted Manning, both of them grinning like sharks.
He felt a painful stab in the pit of his stomach, a cold, final certainty.
There would be no trial.
No one was coming for him.
Between Myth and Legend
Jake stumbled through the darkness. Not the dark of night or that of a room w
ith the candles blown out, but true darkness. Darkness so profound it had never known the light of the sun. It felt ancient and alive, like some primal part of creation the rest of the world had forgotten. Jake crept through the gloom, seeing with hands and feet and muttering prayers that seemed to be swallowed as soon as they passed his lips.
Jake had come to the barrows searching for treasure and had fallen into a large cavern beneath the crypt. All his gear, torches and food lie above him. He didn’t know how he had survived the fall, or indeed, how far he had fallen. He hurt everywhere and couldn’t see or hear anything. When he tried calling out, his voice seemed to fall flat in the air.
Not that there was anyone around to hear him scream.
Stop thinking like that. Keep moving.
Jake moved forward, one slow step at a time, feeling with his hands outstretched like a blind man. He continued on for a time until he heard a soft sound. He stopped, straining to hear. It sounded like… wind. Wind! That meant a way out. He hurried towards the sound, taking full steps into oblivion.
The rushing was louder now and he thought he could feel the warm breeze on his face. He still saw no light, no indication of an opening, but he knew he must be close. Jake pushed forward, almost running in his desperation. His hands outstretched in front of him, he had the briefest of warnings before crashing into something hard.
Jake fell to the ground in a painful heap, groaning.
Well, at least it hadn’t been a cliff.
Jake shook his head to clear the pounding from his thoughts. The wind had changed pitch and he could feel it gusting around him. Knocked on his back, he could see a faint light from high above him.
Yes! If I can just climb…
The light moved. It floated closer to him, hovering about twenty feet away. Another light appeared next to the
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