by Ann Bakshis
The apartment is covered in plush white carpeting and white walls. Colorful paintings, like those in the lobby of Pentras Tower, cover the walls that are not glass. The room is separated by four columns and a cube in the center. In front of me is a common room with a long, white, sectional couch curved in front of a coffee table, and a flat screen attached to the wall between my apartment and the one next door. I walk around, noticing a kitchen and dining room against the other adjoining wall. The bedroom contains a large bed and a dresser. Around the corner from that is a sun-room with lounge chairs and a side table.
“Better than the orphanage, wouldn’t you say?” Jack asks as he stands behind me.
I continue to stare out of the windows of the sun-room, mesmerized by the open field behind our building. I feel him step closer, almost to the point that his body is touching mine.
“Yes, it is,” I finally reply.
I step around him and go back to the common room.
“If you need anything,” Jack says, following me, “simply use the call button in the kitchen and the Matrons will bring it to you.” He walks towards me and places his hands on my arms, caressing them. “If you need me, just enter in my apartment number on the communicator next to the flat screen.”
“Thanks, but I think I’ll be fine,” I say, stepping out of his reach.
He heads back to the front door, turns to me, and smiles. “Remember what I said, Max. I can have whomever I want. That includes you.” He pushes a black button in the wall next to the entrance, the door slides open, and he leaves.
“What the hell is wrong with everyone?!” I shout once the door is closed, feeling utterly disgusted by Jack’s advances.
I’d rather have Brink’s horrid behavior over everyone else here in Icarian.
The Matron arrives a few minutes later with a breakfast tray. She sets it down on the dining room table and leaves. I only eat a little of it since I don’t fully trust anything here. I finish the eggs and take a bite out of the toast when I taste cinnamon. I immediately spit it out and toss the tray into the kitchen sink. I need to get away from everything, so I take the lift down, exit onto the courtyard, and begin heading down the stone road. I don’t get far when Jack falls in step next to me.
“Stalking me?” I ask, not breaking my stride.
“Just curious as to where you’re going.”
“Wherever the road takes me.”
He steps in front of me. “You won’t find an escape from here, Max. Not until the Patrician are ready to transport us.”
“So, what were you promised if you became a Patrician lackey?”
“Huh, you think it’s only about them?”
“Oh that’s right, you’ll play either side. Just like Troy, and just like your father.”
He punches me in the face. I’m in the process of grabbing my weapon when he swings me to the ground, placing his knee into my back. “You know nothing about my family.”
“I know your brother is a Dracken leader, or at least he used to be. My parents are dead because of your father,” I say, squirming under him.
“You’re lying. Troy would never side with the Dracken.”
“Then ask him why he has a dragon tattoo on his right bicep.”
Jack gets up. “I will,” he says, anger heavy in his voice.
He grabs me by the back of my shirt, lifts me off the ground, and we walk back towards our apartment building with him shoving me forward every few steps. We take the lift up to the sixth floor and Jack rings a bell outside of an apartment. Troy opens it up with a smile on his face when he sees my discomfort, but it doesn’t last long when he notices the look on Jack’s face. Jack shoves me inside onto the floor as he closes the door.
“This little whore says you have a dragon tattoo on your arm. Is that true?” Jack asks, stepping so close to Troy that he’s forced to back into the cube wall.
“Yes, but only because father told me to get it,” Troy answers, whimpering.
“Why would he do that? He knows we’re loyal to the Patrician.”
“It’s a safety net, Jack. You were already in Icarian when dad thought of it. He wanted to make sure he had sons on both sides of the playing field.”
“Yeah, in case he had to quickly change his allegiance,” I say from my vantage point on the floor.
Jack kicks me in the stomach, picks me up by my throat, and starts to squeeze. “Tell me why I shouldn’t kill you.”
A laugh escapes my lips. “That threat again? It doesn’t scare me anymore. The Patrician need me to get what they want from Pentras Tower, and I’m the only person capable of accessing the building.”
“We’ll have what they want soon,” Troy says, his confidence returned. “Lok will get it for us. He’s working on cracking the security protocols as we speak.”
“Then what? You give it to the Patrician and they let everyone here live, including you? Is that what they taught you at the academy?” I say.
“How do you know about that?” Jack asks, easing his grip slightly.
“People from Tarsus are not known for their secrets,” I respond. “The Patrician are parasites. They don’t care about you, only what will benefit them. Once they have what they’re looking for, your existence will be terminated.”
Jack squeezes my neck harder. My windpipe is cut off and I begin to black out. The ring at the door stops my execution. According to the monitor, Garrett is standing on the other side of the door. Troy signals for Jack to release me. I fall to the floor and begin to cough, gasping for air. Jack takes my arm, propels me over to the couch, and forces me to sit down.
“Say anything to Garrett, and I’ll have Troy gut you both,” Jack whispers in my ear.
Troy opens the door just as Garrett rings again.
“Hey, I was wondering if you’ve seen Max?” he asks.
Troy steps out of the way to reveal me behind the group.
“There you are,” Garrett says, stepping into the apartment. “I was wondering if you wanted to take a walk around the city. Maybe Jack could give us a tour.”
“I’d be happy to,” Jack says, jumping up from his seat, an eager tone in his voice that I know is forced.
I smile, stand, and the group of us leave. Once we’re down in the lobby, Jack takes us out to the courtyard and begins to tell us more about Icarian. I hold tightly onto Garrett as we walk, terrified of being left alone with Jack and Troy.
“Icarian is an ancient utopian city created by the Patrician to reward those most loyal to them. At first only retired party leaders or high ranking citizens were sent here, but soon after The Litarian Battles was established the winners were gifted with a life of luxury and leisure here. Anything we need is provided to us. You will find no Aedox or formal police of any kind in Icarian,” Jack says as we walk through various courtyards.
“What if a law is broken? Who doles out the punishment?” Garrett asks.
“The person the Patrician have placed as leader, which at the moment is me. This position does change, but only after the person has expired from old age,” Jack replies.
“That can’t happen too often in a place like this,” Troy says.
“Thankfully it doesn’t,” Jack responds.
“But what if it does? How do you punish the offender?” I ask, trying to stir things up again, which probably isn’t the smartest move.
Jack stops, turns around, and looks squarely at me. “We make an example out of them, Max. Display them for all to see. A good example would be someone like you. If you were a true resident of Icarian and you continued with your smart mouth and defiant manner, I would string you up by your thumbs in front of the whole city. Then I would strip you down and whip you until you succumbed to your injuries. Now, does that sound like a decent punishment?”
I slink behind Garrett, averting my eyes from Jack who laughs and continues with the tour. I don’t speak for the rest of the day or evening. We eat a small dinner in one of the cafes in the lobby of the apartment building. I tell Ga
rrett to stay with me for the night. He’s more than happy to oblige, but I want him there mainly for safety. Luckily he’s not into having sex tonight, which I’m overly appreciative for. He’s gone before I wake up the following morning.
My bladder calls me to attention just as the sun is rising, so I go into the bathroom, which is the cube-shaped room in the center of the apartment. Thankfully, it has no windows. The interior of the bathroom is crimson, with gold accents. Against the back wall is a sunken tub big enough to fit three people. Clean towels hang between the tub and the toilet, which is next to the vanity. Across from that is a shower stall with a rainspout for a showerhead. I step back out into the common room, go to the bedroom section, and remove a white linen top and matching pants, along with some fresh undergarments.
I refuse to get dressed in a manner where the entire world can see. When I re-enter the bathroom I make sure to lock that door since it uses a normal door handle. I hang my new clothes on hooks next to the shower stall and place a couple of towels at the base of the tub since it sits on a raised platform. As the water runs to fill up the tub, I rummage under the vanity for bath wash. There are several containers of bath salts, so I pick one and pour them into the steaming water. I strip down and ease my way in.
The hot water feels good against my tired body. I hadn’t realized how tense I was until now. I slip down till only my face is above the water. I feel everything slipping away. All troubles, all concerns, and all cares. I close my eyes and let my mind drift. I deeply inhale the scent wafting up from the bath salts as they dissolve. The aroma of the bath salts makes me wary, but at first I don’t understand why.
Frey enters my mind, and the time I spent with him in Tarsus. I should feel sad about his absence, but I can’t think of why. I feel as if I’m floating above the world, everything is beneath me.
“That’s it, Max, let go,” I hear a voice say in my head. “You know you want more. You deserve more. We can give you whatever you want. We only ask for loyalty in return.”
“Loyalty,” I whisper.
“That’s right, Max. You are a Patrician to the core. A leader everyone will be looking towards when the invasion starts. War is coming, Max, and you’ve finally chosen the correct side.”
I smile automatically at the last comment. The voice leaves me just as the water turns cold. I remove the stopper so the water will drain out and that’s when it hits me. The scent of the bath salts – it was cinnamon. Just like the cinnamon in the tea Frey gave me, it relaxed my body making it easily manipulated. I want to shake myself of the sensation, but I’m suddenly exhausted. I dry off, don my clothes, and I’m startled when I see one of the Matrons setting up breakfast in the kitchen.
“I hope you’ve found everything to your satisfaction,” the woman says to me. “If you need anything, just call and we’ll be happy to supply it.”
She leaves as quietly as she entered. I stare at the food, salivating because I’m starving, but also scared to touch it for fear of more mind and body manipulation. My hunger wins out. I sit at the dining table and eat every bit. I put the dishes in the sink, go into the bedroom area, collapse on the bed, and fall back asleep since my body is suddenly drained.
I dream about Frey. He dies horribly in front of me, burned to death by the fires that ravage the Outer Limits. I don’t cry, or even try to help him. I stand and watch, with Garrett beside me. Frey won’t stop screaming from the pain, so Garrett is forced to shoot him with an arrow, ending his life.
I bolt upright in bed. Not from the dream, but from a noise. Jack walks into the room and sits on the edge of the bed.
“Have a good nap?” he asks, leaning against the headboard.
“How the hell did you get in here?”
“Who do you think programs the biometric readers? I can get into any apartment I wish. It’s one of the benefits of being chosen as a Patrician leader. At least, that’s the deal I made with them to become one.”
“You’re pathetic,” I say.
I shove off the covers and am in the process of getting out of bed when Jack grabs my arm pulling me back down. He presses his massive body on top of mine as his hands wrap around my wrists, thrusting them above my head.
“So, Max, how should we play this out? Do you submit, or do I take?”
“Is that another Patrician leader perk, or are you naturally a fucking asshole?”
“Such language, Max.”
He kisses me hard, practically ramming his tongue down my throat. But I bite back splitting his lip. He backhands me across the face. I squirm under him trying to throw him off, but he’s too heavy.
“You wanted to kill me yesterday, but now you want to fuck me? Get off,” I scream.
“Only when we’re done.”
He leans closer in and I slam my head against his. The world spins and I see stars, but it’s enough to daze him too. I slide out from under him and onto the floor. I bolt towards the bathroom, but Jack is only one step behind me. I round the corner and am reaching for the door handle when Jack’s full weight takes me down. My chin hits the wood planked floor causing me to cut my lower lip. Nausea washes over me as Jack flips me over onto my back. I know I have a concussion. I drift in and out of consciousness, but I know what he’s doing. I grab a hold of reality long enough to plant my foot firmly into his crotch. I take my other foot and knee him in the face. He moans in pain as a move out from under him. I get back to the bedroom and grab the Kopis, which I left slung over a chair at the foot of the bed. Jack gets to his feet and runs after me. I hold the weapon out in front of me and he stops.
“You won’t always be armed, Max.”
He backs away and leaves. I call for one of the Matrons to come up and tend to my injuries, then I go check them out for myself in the bathroom mirror.
So much for being a utopia.
I’m sitting on the floor against the wall of the bathroom when the Matron from earlier enters. She applies a healing ointment to my lip, an ice pack to the bump that has formed on my forehead, and gives me painkillers. She doesn’t ask any questions and says she’ll come back up in a few hours to check on me, but that I shouldn’t go to sleep. She takes my dirty clothes from the bathroom and leaves. I drop my weapon onto the bed, put on clean linen pants and shirt, curl up on the sectional, and turn on the flat screen.
There isn’t anything to watch except what looks like security footage from Tarsus. No one is in the streets. The flashy lights are off, making the large city look eerily abandoned. I pick up a remote from the coffee table and scroll through the few channels available. Previous episodes of The Litarian Battles run in a loop. None of them look recent, so I guess they’re probably from when the show originally started. I shut the screen off, move to the sun-room, pull one of the lounge chairs closer to the windows, and sit. The sun is high overhead and there are more people in the courtyard than there were yesterday.
I wonder how many people live here now that Thrace Tower is empty. Would the Patrician have moved any of their loyalists who lived in Tarsus to here as well? Is that why the city looks so empty?
The front door chimes, so I get up and go over to the communicator. Garrett stands on the other side.
“What do you want?” I ask through the device.
“You all right, Max? You don’t sound right.”
“I’m fine,” I lie. “I’m just tired. I guess the traveling from the Dead Zone to Icarian took more out of me than I thought possible.”
“Then why don’t I believe you? Max, let me in.” He starts pounding on the door.
“Go away.”
“No, not until I know you’re ok.”
“Fine,” I say as I push the button.
The door slides open and Garrett storms into the room. He takes one look at me, picks me up, and sets me down on the couch. He closes the door, goes into the kitchen, and comes back with a cold drink.
“What happened?” he asks, handing me the glass.
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
<
br /> I swallow the glasses contents in one gulp, hand the empty glass back to Garrett, and he goes back to the kitchen to refill it. This time, he returns with two tumblers. He hands me one, but keeps the other as he sits next to me.
“Are you going to tell me, or do I have to guess?”
“You just won’t give up, will you?”
“Not when it comes to protecting you.”
With that last remark, he sounds like the Garrett I met back in Thrace Tower.
“I’ll take care of it,” is the only response I give.
We sit in silence until the Matron returns sometime later with lunch. Somehow she knew Garrett was with me since she brings in two meals. We eat in the dining room, but I only pick at my food since I don’t have much of an appetite. Garrett tries to coax me into going outside with him, but I decline, so he kisses me gently then leaves. I go back to the sun-room, but not until I take my Kopis off the bed. I’m not letting go of it. I probably won’t sleep either while we’re here since Jack can get into the apartment whenever he wants.
I quickly become bored and restless. Sitting idle has never worked out well for me. I go into the bathroom to splash some cold water on my face and notice the suit is hanging on one of the hooks by the shower. It should’ve been removed when the rest of my clothes were, but the Matron left it behind. Why?
I go into the kitchen and push the call button. The Matron responds, asking what I need. I lie and tell her my head is starting to hurt worse. She says she’ll be up shortly. It’s almost an hour later when she finally enters the apartment.
“I brought you something stronger for the pain,” she says, handing me a shot glass filled with a blue liquid.
I take it from her, but I don’t drink it. “Who are you?” I ask.
She looks at me clearly, puzzled by the question. “I’m not sure I understand.”
I go and close the front door. The woman begins to sweat and tremble, though she does a good job trying to hide it.
“You left something behind when you collected my clothing.”
“Oh, I was not aware that I had. Do you need me to clean it?”