Looper

by Ann Bakshis

  So they can only be killed by a weapon they don’t have a shield for or are carrying.

  The two clones of Van have split off one going after Garrett and the other after Brink. I choose to help Brink since Garrett’s shield can defend against Van’s weapon.

  “Van!” I shout up to him. “What does your shield protect you from?”

  “Arrows!”

  I slash Van’s clone across the back just as he’s arming a detonator. He tosses the device at Brink’s feet just before he falls to the ground. I can’t get to Brink so I yell. He sees the device and runs, making it a good distance away before the device explodes. I stab Van’s clone in the chest next and he disappears. I go after the other Van. He’s not daring to arm his weapon since he knows Garrett’s shield will protect him from them. What he is doing is wrestling Garrett to the ground so my twin can kill him. My Kopis slams into my twin’s just as she’s about to come down on Garrett.

  “You do know this is useless, Max,” my clone says to me. “You’re all going to die just like the others.”

  Brink shrieks as Garrett’s clone fires an arrow into his back. He falls to the ground and lies motionless.

  “One down, three to go,” my clone says.

  “I know something you don’t know,” I say to her, mockingly.

  “And what’s that?”

  Garrett’s clone moves over to our group. His arrow ready to fly at me.

  “You can hold each other’s weapons.”

  The clone smiles. “I knew you were smart, Max.”

  I grab her free arm and swing her around so she is now between Garrett’s clone and myself. “But there’s something you don’t know.”

  “And what’s that, Maxy?”

  “So can I.”

  I shove her in the direction of Garrett’s clone, reach for the real Garrett’s weapon, which is at his feet, and fire an arrow as quickly as I can into my clone. I then fire another one towards Garrett’s clone to distract him, drop the bow and arrow, and drive my Kopis into Van’s remaining clone. I then slice up Garrett’s clone.

  I sheathe my weapon and run over to Brink to remove the arrow. Luckily it missed his spine, but I don’t know what else it may have damaged internally. Van drops from the tree as Garrett gets to his feet. I apply pressure to Brink’s wound. Van gives me a piece of his uniform to help stem the bleeding.

  “How the hell did you do that?” Van asks.

  “Not now,” I say.

  “Do you think that was it? That it’s over?” Van asks.

  “I don’t know, but if I don’t get this bleeding under control we’re all dead,” I say.

  It takes all of use to tend to Brink’s wound. We finally get the bleeding under control and Brink starts to come around.

  “What happened?” he asks, his face half covered in mud.

  “Nothing,” I answer. “You just got nicked by an arrow. You’ll be fine.” I take his knives from his hands and secure them in their pouch.

  He narrows his eyes at me. “Liar.”

  An alarm pierces the darkness. It’s so harsh that we have to cover our ears to make sure they don’t rupture. We look around to see where it could possibly be coming from, but there isn’t one general direction. The trees, mud, and water begin to flicker as if losing power. They vanish, and the four of us find ourselves on the gray tiles of the battle floor. The building shakes and dust falls from the ceiling. Another rumble and the walls begin to crack.

  “Do you think this is the next part?!” Brink shouts to be heard over the noise.

  Something tells me no.

  The alarm finally shuts off as the lights begin to waver. The entrance to the battle floor bursts open. Matron Kaniz flies in our direction, blood and ash covering much of her left side, as a group of Aedox pursue her.

  Twenty

  “Max, get them out of here,” she screams at me.

  “Where are the others?!” I shout back.

  “Don’t worry about that. Take your group someplace safe,” she says, pointing to everyone around me.

  Matron Kaniz is struck with a bullet from behind, killing her instantly.

  I take Garrett and Van by the hands. Brink takes Van’s other hand and I loop us out of Thrace Tower. The landing is rough since I projected us to a location I’ve never actually seen. It’s a gamble, but I hope it’s the right choice.

  “Where are we?” Garrett asks, letting go of my hand and cautiously steps towards a pair of thick glass doors tinted purple.

  “Pentras Tower,” I respond, quickly scanning the room.

  “You brought us to the Dead Zone?” Brink practically screams at me, but stops when his body seizes with pain. He takes several deep breaths before continuing. “You were supposed to take us someplace safe, not kill us.”

  “We’ll be fine as long as we stay inside. Van, go see if you can find something to help Brink’s wound.”

  Van sets his bag on the floor and heads off down the corridor at the back of the lobby.

  Dust should be thick over all the furnishings, but there isn’t any. Garrett helps Brink to his feet and sets him down onto one of the couches that encircle the large area. Along the back wall on either side of the corridor are monitors displaying maps. They look to be that of the Dead Zone, Tarsus, the Outer Limits, and someplace else.

  Icarian?

  Van returns a few minutes later with a medical kit. He sits down next to Brink, cleans his wound, and begins sewing him up.

  “Where did you find that?” Garrett asks.

  “There’s a room full of medical supplies down there and to the left,” Van says, pointing down the corridor he just came from.

  Garrett walks around the lobby, which is covered in light blue paint, flourishing plants and a functioning waterfall that stretches up to the third floor, antiques, and two main desks by the monitors.

  “What is this place?” he asks from the other side of the room.

  “Your sanctuary,” a voice booms over our heads from hidden speakers. “Max, you have done well. It was very smart of you to bring them here.”

  “Who are you?” I ask, unsheathing my weapon.

  “We are the Keepers,” intone a number of voices.

  “What’s happened?” Brink asks, grunting slightly from the pain.

  “War has begun. We were not able to start the realignment in time.”

  “Where are the others?” I ask, still holding my weapon by my side.

  “We are able to track only those who survived Thrace Tower. We moved them to other safe locations throughout the Dead Zone. Not all made it out alive.”

  “The Dead Zone isn’t safe,” Garrett says loudly. “It’s full of nuclear toxins from when you bombed the hell out of it.”

  “Untrue.” The voices are now just one again. "We have spent many years cleaning the air and the ground. The Patrician bombed the people when they began to revolt. We stood by helplessly as millions perished.”

  “Lies, all lies,” Garrett says.

  “Do not provoke us, Garrett. Remember, you are still connected to Thrace Tower. We can return you there at our discretion.”

  He looks down at his wristband and remains quiet.

  “How do we stop this?” I ask.

  “Find the others and bring them back to Pentras Tower,” the multiple voices return. “But be careful about the drones. They are controlled by the Patrician. If they catch you, they will kill you.”

  “Why can’t you just loop the others here like you did when you moved them from Thrace Tower?” Van asks.

  “Better yet,” I begin, “why not bring them here to begin with?”

  “We had to act fast as many of our children were dying. We felt it was better to spread them out so that the Patrician could not locate all of you.”

  “That still doesn’t answer Van’s question,” Garrett says.

  “Pentras Tower can only be accessed by a modified Looper. Since Max was altered by the Patrician, she can loop in and out of the structure as she wishes
, as well as anyone connected to her. We, however, cannot physically penetrate the building’s safety protocols. We can gain access to the video and audio portion, but even that is minimal.”

  “You are liars,” Garrett says, almost laughing. “You can’t send me back to Thrace Tower any more than you can transport yourselves into this building.”

  I glare at Garrett and he quiets down.

  “So, it wasn’t a coincidence that you placed me in that unit? You knew what the Patrician had done to me before I got there,” I say.

  “Yes, but we did not know to what extent your alterations had been until you took Garrett’s weapon.”

  “Who told you?” I ask.

  “Tilda. It unfortunately led to her death.”

  “And Vernon? He told the Aedox where I was hiding. He’s with the Patrician, isn’t he?” I ask.

  “Yes.”

  “What was the event going to really be about?” Van asks, packing up the medical kit.

  “We needed a leader for our army as we knew war was imminent. We wanted someone in place before the realignment started, however we were too slow. Pentras is not a new utopia, but a new beginning.”

  The speakers cut out, leaving nothing but silence around us.

  I need to think. Who could’ve made it out? Would the Patrician have saved only those loyal to them, or anyone? Who do I look for first?

  I sheathe my weapon, notice a door with the sign “Stairwell” stenciled across it, and go through the door, then up, two steps at a time. I don’t know where I’m going, I just know I need to get higher in the building.

  “Max, wait,” Garrett calls behind me.

  I don’t stop until I reach the twentieth floor, where I have to catch my breath. I don’t want to loop inside the building since I’ve never seen any of the floors and don’t know their layouts. I knew the lobby from the nightmare, that’s the only reason I could get us there safely.

  “Where are you going?” Garrett asks when he catches up to me.

  “The top floor. It’s the only way to see if we can locate the others.”

  “You’re not serious? They’re more than likely dead. Killed by whatever is outside these walls.”

  “I don’t believe that.” I begin climbing again with Garrett at my heels.

  “You’re going to get yourself killed, Max. Then everything the Patrician did to you will have been for nothing.”

  I stop and turn around. “Don’t you dare defend their actions. They mutilated me.”

  “And the Keepers are using it to their benefit.” He takes a deep sigh, looks down for a brief second, then back at me. “All right, how about we don’t trust either of them, at least until we can figure things out?”

  “We may all be dead by then.”

  I start climbing again and don’t stop until we reach the fiftieth floor. The heavy metal door is jammed, and it takes both of us to open it. The air is stale, but again everything is dust free. The entire top floor is open space with couches, tables, displays that aren’t currently functioning, and lots of windows. Off to the right of the stairwell is a large kitchen including stoves, ovens, and refrigerators. Two massive pantries line the walls by the stairwell door.

  Lightning flashes in the distance as a storm rolls in. I’m not sure how this is possible since the Dead Zone is completely encapsulated. We walk to the far wall and watch the light show, but we don’t hear any thunder. The building is so protected from the outside that not even sound will penetrate.

  Why build a structure like this? Unless, you knew you were going to need it. So, was the bombing of the original city of Pentras really premeditated murder? Were the Dracken in that time trying to prevent it? Why would the Patrician build a society only to destroy it later? Is that why the Dracken are forming again? To stop a second wave of merciless destruction?

  “Max, you all right?” Garret asks, taking my elbow.

  I hadn’t realized I was beginning to sway. He walks me over to a nearby couch and helps me sit down. He then goes over to one of the refrigerators, and opens it. We’re both surprised that it’s still functioning. Inside are perfectly preserved fruits, vegetables, meats, and drinks. They all look as if they’ve been recently stocked. Garret takes a bottle of water and gives it to me. He gets one for himself and sits next to me.

  “Who do you think is out there?” he asks, sipping his drink.

  “I’m not sure. Definitely those who are part of the Dracken, other than that who knows.”

  Lightning flashes brightly as rain begins to pelt the windows.

  “What do you think this building was used for?” Garrett asks after several moments of silence.

  “It was an academy of some sort, or at least that’s what the Patrician showed me.”

  “Do you believe the last part? That the Dracken were the ones safely secured in the building?”

  “No,” I say as a finish my water.

  Flames shoot up into the sky from several miles away. A couple of drones that I hadn’t noticed fly in that direction. Garrett and I both walk to the windows to get a better look, but with the rain coming down in torrents it’s almost impossible to see. Another explosion ignites the same area. The rain falls harder, then there’s another explosion. I get so close to the glass that my face is almost pressed against it. The rain now is coming down in a sheet. Several more balls of fire light up the sky, all still from the same location. As the flames flicker down, the rain tapers off and stops.

  “We need to talk to Van,” I say, dropping my empty bottle and heading back to the stairwell.

  Going down is a lot easier than going up, but it’s not something I want to do many more times. When we reach our floor, Van and Brink are each lying on separate couches, eyes closed, and slightly snoring.

  “Hey,” I say to Van, tapping him on the shoulder.

  He jolts awake, looks confused for a few moments, and then focuses his eyes on me.

  “For Nius, what types of options were you given for explosives?” I ask.

  “Um, let me think. The detonator of course, grenades, land mines, propellants shot from a small pistol. There are a few others, but I can’t remember what they were called.”

  “Could any of them have been ignited by water?”

  “Yeah, a magnesium bomb. They’re small, maybe the size of your palm. Not many people picked them since you need water to set them off, but a few did.”

  “Who?”

  “Only one person comes to mind. Lil. I think she came from the Outer Limits like you. She always made sure she had a full bottle of water or two before hitting the selection floor.”

  “The explosions we saw,” Garrett says, starting to put some of the pieces together. “That’s why the Patrician made it rain, so they could flush out her and whoever she’s with. They must know exactly what types of weapons we have and how we each use them.”

  “Was she a Dracken?” Brink asks, waking up.

  “Yes, she was,” Van replies.

  “So, what do we do?” Brink asks, searching from one face to another.

  “Get to the others before the Patrician do,” I respond.

  “But we don’t know the layout of the Dead Zone, or where they all could be hiding,” Van says.

  “Max has a map,” Garrett blurts out.

  I turn to look at him. “Not anymore. When Lok downloaded the maps onto my wristband, he added an extra program that allowed the Patrician to hack my mind and implant that nightmare. When Matron Kaniz had it removed, the maps went with it.”

  Garrett’s mouth tightens up as he begins to shift his weight from one foot to the other. He looks both antsy and uncomfortable.

  I step closer to him, my hand resting on the handle of my Kopis. “Did you know that he was going to do that?”

  Sweat breaks out on his forehead. “Not exactly.”

  “Then what, exactly?” Brink asks.

  “I didn’t know what the program would do. I thought it would just help turn Max against the Dracken.”

/>   “I should kill you,” I say, gritting my teeth.

  “Then why don’t you,” Garrett says, challenging me.

  “Because we need as many people as possible to make sure this realignment happens,” I respond.

  “I thought we weren’t going to take sides, Max?” Garrett asks.

  “I’m not taking anyone’s side… at the moment.” I walk over to the double doors and begin to wonder where everyone else could be. “Who’s going with me?” I ask, keeping my back to them.

  “I’ll go,” Brink says.

  “No,” I say turning towards him. “You’re injured.”

  “I’ll go,” Van says, standing and slinging his bag over his shoulder.

  I look over at Garrett. I don’t want him to come with and I think he senses it since he removes his bow and quiver from his shoulder, handing them to me.

  “You’ll need these,” he says.

  I take them without hesitation and secure them across my shoulder. Van grabs my hand and I loop us out of the building. We land under an overpass a few blocks away. I want to keep low so the drones don’t spot us. We keep to the side of the road as we move further away from the tower. I wish I knew how to locate the others. I decide to start where the explosions erupted. I take Van’s hand and loop us mile by mile along the road until we come upon the burning remains of structures and players.

  There isn’t much left of Lil, but I can still tell it was her. I don’t recognize anyone else amongst the wreckage, but Van does.

  “They’re mainly from Nius,” he says moving from one body to another. “I don’t see everyone, so maybe they didn’t all get sent at the same time.”

  I check for any useable explosives, but all have been detonated. I loop us a mile to the southeast and onto the plaza from round one. Everything looks just like it did on the battle floor, right down to the Patrician symbol on the tiles of the pool.

  “Who do you think she was?” Van asks, pointing to the fallen statute.