Steele made Neil drive all the way to Augusta. Neil may have been the most powerful man in the world, but he was still outranked by a Lieutenant Colonel. Not long after they started driving, Neil looked over to see the Colonel with his head back and his eyes closed. He was sound asleep. Neil drove the rest of the way with his hands and feet relaxed while he let his mind control the vehicle. Driving was easier that way.
The drive gave Neil a chance to reflect on everything that had happened since his ability manifested itself. He thought of all the happy memories, like the night at the garden with Emma, the first time he flew, and even the time he hit himself in the head with the apple. Those were the experiences he wished he could have more of.
He would never have imagined that such an incredible ability would cause him so many problems in such a short amount of time. If he could do it all over again, he would have been more careful. Flying so close to the ground over a large city like Chicago was dumb. Trying to find someone so quickly to tell his story to was even more idiotic. He could have lived his entire life without telling a soul and been as happy as he had been with Emma until the day he died.
He had gotten too greedy, too quickly. His desire to be important clouded his judgment. He thought back to all of the lessons from childhood. ‘Don’t be a glutton, Neil. Everything in moderation’, his mother would tell him. He didn’t see the value in her advice until it was too late. The problem with experience is that it always comes after you need it.
Things might have been different if he discovered his ability when he was older and more mature. They could have been even worse if he got them when he was a child and completely controlled by impulse.
He couldn’t think of any particular reason for the timing of when he gained his ability. It was too random to be all part of some sort of plan. Yet, he couldn’t help but remember how he had lived his whole life believing that someday, something important would happen to him. The chaos and symmetry of the situation came together like the perfect storm.
Maybe there was a reason for everything that was happening. Maybe one day he would see what that reason was. Right then, he knew too little to make any kind of guesses. For all he knew, it could just be the very start of something big. It could be part of something bigger than just Neil. The past week could have been the start of some chain of events that would shape the world for a thousand years.
Neil was driving himself insane trying to make sense of it, so he let his thoughts drift to other things.
Or, at least he tried. Whenever he let his mind wander, it always returned to one thing.
Emma.
Neil imagined all of the horrible things they could be doing to her. She could be locked up in some secret government torture facility, chained to the wall, cold, beaten, and confused. The thought enraged him.
He looked down and saw that he had taken his anger out on the speedometer. He was driving at 200 miles-per-hour, well over the car’s top speed. More often, Neil was starting to use his power without willing it. It seemed to be a natural part of him now. Sometimes he thought it had a mind of its own. He worried that it might eventually have more control over his life than he had.
A road sign let Neil know that he was just a few miles away from his exit to Augusta. He tapped Steele on the shoulder.
“Sir, we’re almost there. I…I have no idea where to go.” He admitted.
“Just get off at Jimmy Dyess and take it all the way to the main gate. Don’t wake me up again until we get there.”
He was out again in just a few seconds.
Neil exited the freeway and continued on towards the entrance to Fort Gordon. There were no other cars waiting to go through the gate. It was three o’clock in the morning now and all of the roads were eerily empty.
As he pulled the car up to the gate guard, he nudged Steele to wake him up again. The guard held out his hand, waiting for their military IDs. Steele pulled out his wallet to retrieve his, but Neil didn’t have any form of military ID yet.
“Umm, I’m new. Will a driver’s license work?” He asked, as he handed both IDs over.
The guard motioned for them to drive through without answering Neil. He was not in a chatty mood.
Neil continued on past the gate, and entered Fort Gordon for the first time.
CHAPTER 12
“We’re going to the NSA building. Follow this road all the way to 15th and turn left. You’ll see the building a mile down the road.”
Neil followed his directions all the way to the building Steele described. The NSA building was clearly the biggest structure on the base. The parking lot seemed way too large for the two story building in front of them, despite its massive size. What was even more surprising was that it was packed, even in the early morning. The building held just as many secrets as the administration that operated inside of it.
“Have you been here before, Sir?”
“Gordon, yes. Not the NSA building. No one goes into the NSA building if they don’t have a reason to be there. They like their privacy.”
Neil drove up to the gate outside the parking lot and saw a machine that was used for scanning ID cards.
“Uhh, how do I get in? I don’t have an ID.”
Right as Neil asked the question, the gate opened on its own. He hesitated for a moment, unsure of what triggered the open path before them.
“Looks like they are expecting us.” Steele said, smirking.
Neil was unsettled. He looked up and saw a camera above the gate. Was Carl watching them at that very moment?
He drove through, despite his hesitation, and parked the car. The closest spot they could find was still a quarter mile from the main entrance. They parked and walked towards the doors. As they made their way closer to the building, Neil admired the beautiful modern glass architecture. The sun reflected off the panels and illuminated the entire parking lot with the orange glow of the rising sun. The government wasn’t afraid of spending money to be flashy.
On the outside of each of the six double doors leading into the building was a card reader. They passed dozens of personnel leaving the building. The population of a small city somehow fit inside. When they were just a few feet from the doors, the red light on each device turned green, and Neil heard a mechanical click from the locks. They both looked at each other quizzically, then proceeded inside.
Inside were a series of six metal detectors, each with a member of the Air Force standing guard and a small line of people waiting to be cleared. The Airmen stood at a podium with another card reader. The two of them walked to the shortest line and waited for their turn to go through security.
“ID Please” said a short female Airman with red hair.
They handed her their ID. When the Airman saw Neil’s driver’s license, she chuckled and handed it back to him.
“Ya’ll don’t work here, do you?” She said.
Colonel Steele opened his mouth to speak, but right as he did, the Airman touched her earpiece. Neil thought he heard the sound of a muffled voice coming through it.
“I’m sorry about that, they’re telling me to let you through. They said to get your ID cards at the security office. It’s right that way.”
She pointed to a glass door on the other side of the security checkpoint.
Neil didn’t like the idea that their every move was being watched.
They proceeded through the metal detectors. Even after removing every metallic item, Neil triggered the detector.
“You got a phone on ya, Sir?” The Airman asked.
“Of course I do. I don’t know why that would trip the detector, though. There’s no metal in it.”
“It’s not just a metal detector. It can detect the electromagnetic discharge from things like your phone or an iPod. You can’t bring anything with a battery in here. Put it in one of those lockers over there and try coming through again.”
Neil didn’t quite understand why he wasn’t allowed to bring his phone, but he deposited it into the locker that the
woman directed him to. Steele did the same.
After being cleared, Neil opened the door to the office that the Airman pointed to. Right as they walked in, a short stocky man wearing civilian clothes approached them holding two ID badges.
“You must be the two they were telling me about. Here, you’ll need these to get around the building. Use it to take the elevator to your floor.”
The man handed them their badges and went back behind the counter, focusing his attention back on whatever he was doing on the computer.
The elevator lobby was massive. Rather than a few large elevators, there were dozens of smaller ones. Each appeared only big enough for two or three people. Steele pushed the button to call the nearest elevator to them. It opened right away.
Inside the elevator, there were no buttons. Instead, there were two card readers, one on either side of the door. Steele swiped his card, and the light on the reader turned green. Nothing happened. The reader on Neil’s side of the elevator was still red. He figured that the elevator must require both people to swipe their cards for it to operate.
Neil swiped his card, and the elevator doors closed.
“Basement twenty-six” the voice came from the elevator.
Neil realized why the parking lot looked so huge. Most of the facility was underground. If they were going to the 26th basement level, how far down did it go exactly?
The ID badges that they received were programmed to let them take the elevator only to the floor they worked on. Neil was impressed by the advanced security features of the building.
After a short ride in the elevator that seemed like it was powered by a jet engine, the two reached their floor and stepped out. Neil jumped as the elevator behind them snapped shut and began its journey back to the main floor.
Before them was a long, poorly lit hallway with clean linoleum floors. The walls were lined with identical black metal doors, each with an ID card scanner like the doors on the outside of the building and the elevator.
Each door was marked with a marble engraved plaque with the department name on it, as well as the head of that department. The doors were spaced out inconsistently, based on the size of the department. Above each door was a black dome with a red light. Neil guessed it was a security camera. Every employee must be captured by at least two dozen cameras every day on their way into work.
The elevator was at the very end of the hallway, so they started making their way towards the other end, looking for a door marked “PRECINCT”. As they walked, the people passing them in the hallway stared. Everyone could tell they didn’t belong.
They made it all the way to the other end of the hallway without finding the door they were searching for. Once he reached the far side, Neil understood why. There was a large silver set of double-doors at the opposite end. Above it was a large sign with the name PRECINCT.
Neil approached the scanner in front of the door and swiped his card. As he stepped inside, he realized why PRECINCT wasn’t behind just a standard door. There wasn’t just a small office space dedicated to the department. It had a whole wing.
Beyond the doors was a reception area. The floors and walls were chrome finished. Even the furniture was made of metal. The wall on the other side of the room was made of glass, and behind it Neil could see a gallery with two entire floors dedicated to just their department. There were at least a dozen people walking around carrying cardboard boxes and folders. A series of cubicles was set up on the main floor, and the walls of the gallery were lined with offices.
In front of the reception desk was a face that Neil recognized – the librarian wearing the red dress from before. This time she was wearing a dark blue dress shirt and a black skirt, but her silky brown hair was still pulled back into the same bun she had in the library.
She was already standing up waiting to greet them as they walked in, prepared with a fake smile. As Neil had already guessed, their visit was no surprise.
“Neil, welcome! We’ve been expecting you. I don’t know if you recall, but we met at the library.” She said, “My name is Tanya, and you have no idea how much of a pleasure it is to meet you. Come with me, and I’ll take you to your room where you can drop off your belongings.”
“My room?” Neil asked, “Are you saying I’m going to be kept here as a prisoner?”
Neil had a feeling his ‘room’ was going to feel more like a prison cell.
“Of course not! Don’t be silly. The room is just a…convenience. You are free to go whenever you like, unless, of course, you want to see Emma again.” The smile from her face vanished, and was replaced with a look of stern sincerity. “My personal recommendation is that you remain here.”
“You fucking cunt! If you lay a hand on my daughter, I will destroy everything you have ever loved.” Steele walked quickly towards her, pointing as he yelled. Tanya remained perfectly still, and her infuriating fake smile returned.
“Oh, please. We’re not afraid of you, Colonel Steele. The only reason we brought you along was to make sure Neil doesn’t forget why he’s here. Neil is the only one any of us have a reason to be afraid of.”
Admitting that they were afraid of Neil caught him off guard.
“Hitchens? Why the hell would you be afraid of Hitchens?” Steele asked, looking back and forth between the two of them.
Neil felt bad for him. He was in way over his head and completely clueless.
“Neil, you didn’t tell him? Oh, this is going to be good.” Tanya said, folding her arms. “I’ve got an idea. Why don’t I show you where you can drop your bags off, and then we’ll go to the testing room for a little demonstration.”
“Testing room?” They both asked in unison.
“Oh, yes. We were given a quite a substantial funding boost once Carl let them know that you were on your way. We actually just moved in to this new office yesterday.” Tanya motioned towards the main floor as she guided them out of the reception room and down the stairs. “Everyone has been working around the clock to make sure everything is in order for your arrival. There are a lot of people very interested to see what you are capable of, Neil.”
As Tanya gave them the quick tour of the building, Neil could see that everyone was indeed very busy setting up. People were carrying around boxes, papers, computers, and all kinds of other office supplies. He heard several power drills all around the office. People in business suits, coveralls, lab coats, and just about every other kind of working attire were moving about the department. Despite the rush that everyone was in, they all paid a passing glance at Neil. Hardly anyone paid any mind to Colonel Steele. By the look on his face, it was easy to tell he was not used to being ignored.
Tanya took them to two adjacent rooms on the opposite side of the main floor from the reception room. Their ID badges opened the locks on the outside and for the first time since leaving Michigan, they separated to set their belongings inside their new quarters.
His room looked more like a repurposed office than actual living quarters. Neil was surprised to see that they were given quite generous accommodations. Both rooms had a queen sized bed, a desk with a leather office chair and government computer, plenty of dresser space, and a shared bathroom with a shower between them. Like everything else they had seen inside the NSA building, the lighting was dim and the color on the carpet and walls were all dark shades of blue or grey.
The thing that surprised Neil the most was that he had a window. It wasn’t exactly a window. Instead, the wall on the opposite side from the door was a 52” flat panel display that was showing a camera feed from outside the building. It also had access to the full lineup of TV channels.
A brown box in the corner of the room caught Neil’s eye. On top of it was a note saying ‘For Neil’. He opened up the box and found what was inside. He would have smiled if he wasn’t being held prisoner. It was a giant box of Legos. He couldn’t tell if it was meant to be a joke, or if they were trying to give him something to practice with.
Neil left his quarters an
d found Tanya and Steele waiting for him outside.
“Everything is to your liking, I presume?” Tanya asked. Neil nodded. “Excellent. I know you must be tired from your long trip, but how about a little bit of fun before bed time? I think now would be the perfect opportunity to perform a few small diagnostic tests to get the ball rolling. I’m sure it would also serve to satisfy Mr. Steele’s curiosity.”
“That’s Colonel Steele, you she-bitch.” He scoffed.
“Yes, of course.” She barely acknowledged his comment. “Neil, if you would, please proceed through that door right over there into the testing facility. Mr. Steele, follow me to the observation deck.”
She pointed at a thick metal door just a short distance away from his living quarters. Steele followed Tanya up the nearby stairs to a separate door, directly above the one Neil was standing next to.
Next to the metal door was a strange type of security device that Neil had never seen before. There was no card reader. Instead, there was a rectangular clear, plastic case attached to the wall. Resting on the bottom of the case were three metallic marbles. They looked exactly like the ones that Carl laid out in front of Neil at the library.
Against the wall within the enclosure were three circular holes. They looked just large enough for the three metal balls to fit in.
It dawned on Neil how the security device was supposed to work. It was only for him. He lifted the metal balls behind the plastic case and maneuvered them into the three holes. All three were pushed completely into the slots, and he heard the mechanical click of the door being unlocked. He released the balls and they fell back to the bottom of the plastic case.
The mechanism reminded Neil of those cheap plastic toys that came in cereal boxes. They had small metal BBs inside, and a maze that had to be navigated through by tilting the toy in different directions.
Neil walked into the testing facility and scanned the room. Inside was an open space the size of a high school gymnasium. Every surface of the room was covered in thick metal plating. It seemed they expected some roughhousing to happen there.
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