Giles appraises me with those pale eyes. I wonder what answer he was expecting from me.
“And if you had control of the Metz? What would you do then?”
“Deactivate their chips and try to persuade them to keep the laws. But proper ones, protecting everyone,” I say promptly.
“And if they refused?”
“That’s their business. They can go and get another job.”
I finish the bar and toss the wrapper in the bin.
“Here.” Giles holds out the black box.
I stare at it for a second, wondering if this is a trick. “I can take it?”
He nods. It seems I have passed the test.
I reach out and take the box from him. It’s heavier than I’d expected, and the surface is so smooth it almost slips from my hands. I turn it over. “How do I use it?”
“First, I need to reprogram it. When I nod, say your name. Like this.” He reels off an oddly formal phrase then, taking the box back from me, brings up the display.
“I, Giles, relinquish control of this device to Aleesha.” He nods at me and points to the holographic display.
“I, Aleesha, accept control of this device and promise to use it only for good.” It feels a little strange making a promise to a black box.
“Change of control accepted.” The monotone voice makes me jump.
Giles hands the box back to me. “Now it will only respond to you. If you need to transfer control, you need to repeat the procedure.” He frowns. “Though please don’t. Remember what I said.”
“It could be dangerous in the wrong hands.” I nod. “Um, what do I do with it?”
It turns out the box is surprisingly easy to use. There are two settings: control and deactivation. “Deactivation is simple,” Giles explains. “You just select the chip you want to deactivate and give the command.”
I select the control setting. An image of Giles’s room appears above the box. The objects and us are outlined like a pencil sketch. Giles shows me how to zoom in and out. “I haven’t fully tested the range, but it’s likely to be fairly limited.”
A pulsing dot flashes in a corner of the room. “Is that a chip?”
He nods. “It’s one I’ve been using for testing. Select it.”
I press my finger to the dot and a command box appears.
“Now you just tell it what you want to do. Keep things simple though – one command at a time. You can select multiple chips by keeping your finger on this part of the box.” He demonstrates. “Then you can give one command to all of them.”
“What about the captains? Will they show up any different?”
Giles nods. “They’ll show as red dots. That’s their second chip. You can control their actions using this, but I’m not sure if you can replace the directions they’re giving to the officers. So, to be sure, you’ll need to deactivate them.” He hesitates. “Just … make sure they’re somewhere safe, okay? Deactivation will be a disorientating experience for any officer. They’ll be vulnerable.”
I nod and draw in a breath. “Okay. Thanks.” I give him a weak smile. “I’ll take care of it.”
He hands me a strap so I can hang the box around my neck. I tuck it inside my jacket. It creates an awkward bulge but at least it’s out of the way.
As I turn to leave, a thought strikes me. Something Samson had said, that I’d forgotten about until now.
All Metz officers have had their chips reset. Your rogue officer won’t be rogue anymore.
“Giles, what happens if the officers have their chips reset? Back at the compound?”
He glances up at me. “It means any memories they’ve retained since the last reset will be wiped. Sometimes they’ll reset chips if they think there’s a fault.”
“How about the officer I mentioned? The one I talked to. If he had his chip reset … he wouldn’t recognize me?”
Giles shakes his head. “Probably not.”
He walks over to the thick curtain blocking the entrance to the tunnel. “Good luck, Aleesha. And remember, they are people too.”
I step through into the dark tunnel and the curtain closes behind me. The box hangs heavy around my neck as I crawl toward the light.
To my surprise, when I emerge from the tunnel entrance, it’s already late morning. I must have slept for longer than I thought.
Immediately, I get the sense that something is wrong. The air tastes of smoke. There’s often smoke from hobie fires, but this is different. Besides, even hobies tend to stay away from the concrete jungle.
I step out from behind the concrete blocks that hide the entrance to Giles’s tunnel and stare. Black smoke rises from fires across the city. Sounds of violence carry on the breeze. More violence than normal, that is. On the wasteland that separates the jungle from the rest of the city, people lie as if asleep.
Except they’re not asleep.
I scramble down from my vantage point, scanning the area for any sign of danger. A flash of movement catches my eye and I duck behind a low block, then peer around it. A figure darts out from the rubble and moves between the bodies on the ground, patting them down. I recognize the slight build and the capering movement. It’s one of the Boots Brothers.
Raiding the dead? No surprises there.
He moves closer to the Wall. There are a couple of bodies right up against it and I wonder if they were pushed into the Wall or ran into it willingly to avoid something worse. It seems the Metz have finally made their move.
The man pulls the first body away from the Wall, dragging it along the rough ground by its feet. He doesn’t see the Metz officer emerging from a dark alleyway, but someone else does. There’s a shout from the rubble. The man looks up and begins to run. But he’s too late. There’s a crack as the officer fires, and the man falls to the ground screaming and clutching his leg, his body convulsing as an electric shock ripples through him.
I hesitate for a moment. Leave him. The Metz would be doing everyone a favour by getting rid of them.
But this seems as good an opportunity as any to test out Giles’s device. If it doesn’t work, I can retreat back into the rubble pile and rethink.
The officer walks over to the man who’s screaming for his brother. I wonder what his brother will do. Whether he’ll go to his twin’s aid or stay hidden and save his own skin.
A knife whistles through the air and bounces off the officer’s helmet.
You’ll have to do better than that.
I creep a little closer and tuck myself behind a concrete block out of sight of the Boots Brothers and the officer. I pull the black box out of my jacket and activate it as Giles had shown me.
An image of the surrounding area appears in the air. It’s a little tricky to get the hang of moving the hologram around but I manage to zoom in on the officer looming over a writhing figure on the ground. They seem to be near the limit of the range, perhaps a hundred metres away. A green dot pulses on the back of the officer’s head.
I select the dot and the command box appears. The outline of the officer raises its weapon and points it at the man on the ground, who raises his arms to ward off the blow.
“Lower weapon,” I whisper.
The words appear in the command box, and a fraction of a second later the officer lowers its weapon.
It works!
I try again. “Turn around and take two steps forward.”
There’s a slight delay while the device registers and passes on the command, then the black figure slowly turns and takes a couple of steps toward me. My pulse quickens, and I feel a rush of adrenaline.
Another figure emerges from the rubble. I watch on the display as the man crosses the space to his brother, then turns and creeps up behind the Metz officer, a knife raised above his head.
At the last minute, the officer turns, swiping at the man’s arm. The knife flies through the air and the force of the blow knocks the man to the floor. The officer stands over him, impassive.
I bite my lip. Why did he attack? Perhaps
there’s some built-in defence mechanism.
“Stay still. Do not defend yourself.” I peer around the concrete block. The second brother gets to his feet, eying the officer cautiously. He retrieves his knife and, without warning, launches himself forward and brings the knife down on the officer’s back.
This time the officer does nothing to defend itself. But the knife scrapes harmlessly down the impenetrable armour. The man throws himself at the figure again, but his weight is barely enough to make the officer rock on its feet.
“Taser attacker in the leg,” I murmur into the command box. Best put the Boots Brothers out of action for now.
The officer raises its weapon and the man falls to the ground wailing. I step out from my hiding place and walk over to them. There’s a flash of recognition in the first brother’s eyes.
“You!” His thin lips twist into a grimace as he reaches for his knife.
“Point weapon at men.”
He freezes as the barrel of the officer’s gun is aimed at his head. His eyes flick to me and back to the officer. “You control it?”
“Seems like it,” I say with a smile.
The command box flashes, confused by the command. Damn, this thing needs a mute button.
I chew my lip, wondering what to do. I don’t want to deactivate the officer here, but I also don’t want it wandering around Area Four.
“Return to compound,” I instruct.
The black figure turns and begins to walk away.
I turn back to the twins. “Remember, you owe me one,” I say, hoping I’ve made the right choice. Perhaps it would have been better for everyone if I’d just let the officer kill them both. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned from life, it’s that it’s always worth being owed favours.
I tuck the box back into my jacket and walk toward the sound of fighting.
At first, I wonder where everyone is. Fires rage out of control, fuelled by the piles of rubbish that litter the streets. There are a few bodies and a couple of people who are too close to death to help, but everyone else seems to have disappeared.
The sound of sobbing catches my attention. I follow it and find a young woman, hunched over, her arms wrapped around a young child. She looks up in alarm at the sound of my approach, but her face relaxes as she catches sight of me.
I crouch down beside her. “What happened?”
She looks up at me and opens her arms to reveal the bloodied face of a young boy, perhaps two years old. His face is peaceful, as if he’s sleeping, but his skin is pale and his chest still.
“The Metz. They came so quickly … We had no warning. We tried to run but they were everywhere.”
She’s bleeding too, from a shallower wound on her forehead.
“We got caught in the middle of a fight. Everyone was fighting each other to get away from them.” This triggers a fresh bout of sobbing.
“Where did they go?” I ask, looking up and down the street.
“I-I don’t know. They were everywhere … and then they were gone. Everyone was gone, like they’d been herded away.”
My blood chills. I pat the woman’s shoulder and stand, quickening my pace as I move further north and east.
I need a plan. I can’t just stop them one at a time. And sending them all back to the compound is no use. We need to take them out of action. But without hurting them.
I duck into a side alley and come face to face with Jay. His face is smeared with dirt and fresh blood leaks from a slash on his shoulder. Jonas is two steps behind him, along with another member of the Snakes whose name I can’t remember.
Jay doesn’t look pleased to see me. “Aleesha? Wh—”
“What’s going on?”
He scowls at me. “Metz raid. A big one. We barely got ten minutes warning and we only got that because I went against what Samson had said and upped the Cleaning watch.”
You mean you took my advice.
But, of course, he’s not going to admit that.
“What about the other gangs? And Samson – what’s he been doing?”
Jay looks angry. “That—” He bites his lip. “He told us not to fight, but what could we do? They raided the headquarters. They’ve never hit us that hard before. We’ve been fightin’ back, tryin’ to protect people, but they’re just too hard to take down.”
“I have something that can stop them,” I say quietly.
“We need more weapons. Guns. Do you think the taser bullets they use would work on them?”
Jonas gives him a dig in the ribs. “Err, Jay. She said she can stop ’em.”
Jay gives me a disbelieving look. “You what?”
I pull the box out from under my jacket. “This is a control device. It overrides the instructions the Metz get.”
Jay reaches out a hand, but I pull back. “I’m the only one who can use it. It’s linked to my voice.”
His eyebrows knit together. “How does it work?”
“It would take too long to explain.” Especially to you. “But I need to get through to where the most Metz officers are. It’ll take me too long to pick them off one at a time. I need your help.”
Jay considers this for what feels like an age. I tap my foot and glance at Jonas. He shrugs sympathetically.
“Fine,” Jay says eventually. “They’ve been through this part of Four and down to the river. Far as we can tell, they’re sweepin’ up north. Toward Rose Square.”
Rose Square. The irony doesn’t escape me.
I take a deep breath. “Okay, let’s go.”
Jay’s eyes flick to a point just over my shoulder and widen.
“Go where?” Samson enquires from behind me.
Someone is cursing me today.
I turn to face him. “We’re going to stop the Metz.” I fold my arms awkwardly across the bulge in my jacket. “Let’s talk on the way.”
His eyes narrow and flick to my chest. I lower my voice. “Please? I’m on your side. Kind of.”
“Let’s go,” Samson says authoritatively, as if he’d just made the decision. “Jay, find the best way through. I need to speak with Aleesha.”
Jay doesn’t look happy about being ordered around but he mutters to the others and they move off. I walk after them, forcing Samson to follow me.
“What are you playing at? And what are you carrying in your jacket?”
My neck prickles at his proximity. If I were taller, I’d be able to feel his breath on my neck. The thought sends a shiver down my spine and I feel a flash of anger that he can still intimidate me with just his presence.
“So, this is how your plan for protecting Outsiders played out?” I spit. “Do you even care how many people have died so far today?”
“I care,” Samson says tightly. “More than you will ever realize.”
I stop and turn to face him. “You could have stopped all of this!” I jab a finger in his chest. “If you and the President are so close, why didn’t you stop it?” I swallow and try to draw a breath, but it catches in my throat.
He brushes my hand away. “Don’t you think I tried?” His eyes tighten. “I asked him for more time, so I could try to get the gangs to cooperate.”
“If you hadn’t ordered them not to fight, to take people off Cleaning watch—”
“Would it really have made that much difference against an army?” he snarls. “Don’t be too quick to accuse, Aleesha. You’re hardly blameless yourself.”
I take a step backward. He rises above me like a shadow, the whites of his eyeballs the only light in the dark. It feels as if the air is snatched from my lungs.
He’s right. I should have done more.
I clutch at my chest, but my hand closes instead around the square box.
“Are you comin’ or not?” Jay shouts from further up the alley.
I tug the box out with trembling hands. “There is a way to stop it. It’s a control box. Don’t ask me where I got it from. And I’m the only one who can use it – it’s voice activated. I’ve tested it. I can contr
ol the Metz. Or shut them down altogether.”
Samson’s eyes widen. “You can override their orders?”
“Yes. But I need to be in close range. We need to do one group, then move on to another.” I bite my lip. “I-I need your help.”
His brows knit together. “To get you in there?”
I nod. “And protect the Metz.”
“What?”
It’s the first time I’ve seen real surprise on his face. In fact, any expression other than annoyance or anger.
“Guys!” Jay again.
I turn and begin walking. Samson follows. “If I stop them attacking Outsiders, they’ll be defenceless. People will butcher them. You need to make sure people don’t attack them once they’re inactive.”
“Let me get this straight. You want me to protect the Metz?”
I glance up over my shoulder at him. “Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because they’re people. Just like you and me. At least, not exactly like us … but without the suits and the chips in their heads, they’re people. We can’t just kill them.”
We walk in silence for a minute. The sound of fighting gets louder and the streets get busier, mostly with people running away.
“And why did you think I would help you with this?”
“Because you said you cared about helping everyone. Insiders and Outsiders. And there’s no one else,” I say flatly. “If you won’t help them, I’ll have to send them back to the compound. Back into their hands.”
Another silence. “Okay, I’ll help.” He sounds reluctant. “But they’ll need to be together. In one place, ideally inside.”
There’s a shout from up ahead. We’ve found the Metz.
“Rose Square,” I say over my shoulder. “Just get me to Rose Square.”
28
Trey
I run blindly from street to street, jumping over prone figures and dodging fights. Smoke stings my eyes, blurring my vision as tears leak out and run down my cheeks. Shots ring in my ears, but I’m not sure if they’re shooting at me or someone else. Or perhaps it’s just the echoes of the bullets that peppered Matthews’ chest.
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