by Brad Carr
Turning his attention to the man, Kansas ordered, “Munson, grab Scarla’s rifle.” Looking to his right he commanded, “Vera, take the pistol from that other body over there.”
Leah and Pierre stood silently, terrified to move a muscle. They weren’t sure if these people were friend, or foe. Mostly, they were struck in awe of the magic of a suit of invisibility.
“Well, well, guess we didn’t need to hunt her down after all,” Sparks said. Marching over to Scarla’s body, he hovered over her. “Now why did you have to disobey me Scarla? You were such a good soldier. Hell, I even considered you a friend.” Changing his gaze to Leah and Pierre, he asserted, “Like I said children, you aren’t going anywhere. I need to know what this woman told you.”
Hoping she could act in ignorance to what Pierre’s instructions were, Leah replied, “She didn’t tell us anything Mister. That lady was dead when I got out of the box. Pierre doesn’t know anything either.”
Kansas’ cold eyes focused in on Pierre. “Is that true, Pierre?”
Before Pierre could answer, Leah whispered in his ear, “Say nothing, they’ll kill us.”
“Stop talking to him! He’s a big boy, he can answer himself.”
“I….I…she told me nothing. Miss Scarla just told me we have to leave, and then I went,” Pierre stammered.
“So Scarla remained silent the whole time you traveled with her? That my good boy, is horrible manners.” Kansas paused,”Are you sure?”
“Yes, yes Sir.”
“Sir? Why now see that Munson, that’s how you talk to people, respect and manners,” Kansas compared while directing his comment to Munson.
“Yes Mister Sparks,” Munson replied.
“See that Pierre, we’re all being gentlemen now. So, as a good, and respectful young man, it isn’t courteous to tell falsehoods. Let me make this agreement with you Pierre, I will be your friend. Friends don’t lie to each other. Even if they have something to say to them. Something they may not like to hear. Is that the problem Pierre? Are you afraid to tell me something? Because you don’t want to disappoint your new friend?”
“He doesn’t know anything Mister, now let us be on our way,” Leah boldly proclaimed in a shaky voice.
“Holy shit boss! You gonna let that girl talk to you like that?” Vera said.
“Vera, I will handle this. Now kindly be quiet.”
“Yessir.”
Shifting his notice away from Vera, and onto Leah he asked,”What is your name Dearie?”
“I don’t see why that is any concern of yours?”
“Wow, listen to the mouth on that kid,” Munson chimed in.
“You know Dearie, you remind me of someone. I can’t quite place it. Someone I haven’t seen in a long time. Kindly, please tell me your name?”
“My name is NONE. OF. YOUR. DAMN. BUSINESS!” Leah replied, her courage grew astronomically with each passing moment.
“Oh my,” Kansas grasped his chest, sarcastically portraying a heart attack. Kansas, Vera, and Munson loudly cackled. Munson held his stomach, bending over and pointing back at Leah. “Now you have some gumption don’t you?” Kansas laughed. “I guess we have to do this the hard way.”
Continuing to giggle, Kansas took off his flimsy cloak backpack, dropping it to the ground. Opening the secure latches, he reached inside, pulling out the sheathed katana. Carefully strapping the backpack on again, he stopped chuckling, breathing a heavily serious sigh. Removing the sword from the shiny blue sheath, it produced a “shikt” sound. The blade reflected the poor lighting of the cave tunnel. Pierre and Leah could see specks of dried maroon blood on its sharp blade. Laughing ceased. Scary tones of horror played dark notes into Leah’s heart.
“You see this Dearie? This is my Katana blade. I used to have a better one. It was my favorite. But alas, it was taken from me a long time ago. This one is okay though, it does a fine job. Beautiful isn’t it? I haven’t properly cleaned it since I took Enzo’s head.”
Pierre began to cry, “Dad? You killed my papa?” His body shook with grief, and despair. “Please, no. No. No!” Tears streamed down the little boy’s face, dripping off his chin. Pierre dropped to his knees, holding his hands over his eyes. Leah knelt beside him in comfort. Slyly reaching into his pocket, she removed the recording device without anyone’s notice. Leah hugged Pierre, placing the device in her overall chest pocket. Kansas allowed him a few moments to cry.
Whispering in Pierre’s ear she said, “On my signal, we need to run as quick we can. I can make a distraction.”
Behind Kansas, Vera, and Munson, two trigger rats began gnawing away at Scarla’s body. Their pink, oily skin, protruded under their white fur. Void of pupils, their rodent eyes were a bright red. The hairless tails reminded Leah of long earthworms. Sharp pointed teeth descended downward past their jawline.
Leah concentrated hard on the two rats. She had never attempted to talk to rats before. Taming an animal, other than pigs and dogs, required more time, and training. But there was one thing she could do. Leah instinctively knew how to make any animal have the same anxiety she was feeling at the moment. Anxious animals can be dangerous, because they can respond with fearful rage. Two rats wouldn’t do much damage to anything, but if she bought enough time; the other trigger rat packs could arrive.
Leah’s brain pounded with a migraine intensity. Trigger rats began to arrive at the scene; one by one, then two by two, followed by six more. Every second, more rodents began to pile in. All of the white rats faced the direction of Kansas, and his gunmen; ignoring the delicious morsels of flesh that have already died. However, the only one who noticed the arrival of the trigger rats, was Leah, who stared them down behind the gunmen.
Kansas grew impatient with Pierre and grabbed the two children to split them up. Grasping tightly to Pierre’s hair he exclaimed, “Enough of this waste of time! You’ve pushed your luck long enough!” Slinging them away from each other, they landed on their back sides.
“Damn you!” Leah screamed.
“I have had enough of your insolence, little girl.”
“Take a look behind you old man,” she said defiantly. Glaring behind, he saw a horde of trigger rats behind Munson and Vera. “Pierre! Run!” Leah yelled, leaping to her feet.
Pierre hesitated, but clambered upward, attempting to sprint in Leah’s direction. Leah grabbed Pierre’s hand to pull him along. Kansas ran a few steps, swinging his katana. Pierre’s grip pulled downward, causing Leah to stumble onto her knees. Blood sprayed across the back of her overalls. The young boy’s decapitated head bounced forward in front of Leah. Horrified, she froze. Leah’s knees were getting soaked from the pool of blood shooting out of Pierre’s body.
Leah was too frightened to cry. It felt like a scary story. “This isn’t real. I’m having a nightmare!” She began pinching herself.
“So sorry Dearie, “ Kansas confessed. Calmly speaking in a low tone, “Just, close your eyes. It will be over soon.” Kansas stood beside her, raising his blade to attempt the killing blow. “Ack!” he jolted.
Trigger rats hurled themselves onto him, frantically biting and clawing through his cloaking suit. Leah reacted, rushing to her feet. Her short legs moved quickly, leaving Kansas behind, fighting the trigger rats.
Munson and Vera unloaded as many shots as they could. But the rodents’ razor sharp teeth dug into all the areas of their ankles. Once their achilles tendons were severed, Munson and Vera fell to the ground in a swarm of rodents. Squeaking over their cries, gnawing and devouring through their cloak suits to get to their flesh, blood curdling screams filled the tunnels.
Vera was silenced as one rat entered her mouth, chewing her tongue. Eventually stretching her jaws open, painfully unhinging from her face; the rats dug into her esophagus. Munson’s face was mangled. One of the trigger rats rolled one of his eyes around its paws. Within a few minutes of struggle, they were unrecognizable piles of fleshy meat. Finally, they were granted the mercy of death, after the slow horrific torture of
being eaten alive.
***
Leah stuck to the shadows, near the cave walls, following the string of lights on the ceiling of the tunnels. Unknown to the elapsed time since she took flight, her energy decreased. Lungs burning, she didn’t have much of a choice, but to stop and rest. Ahead, she spotted a random supply shed. Corrosion lightly formed on the metal wall surfaces. Leah approached the red door.
The white metal sign read, “UTILITY” in faded blue letters. Standing on a narrow rusted steel platform, she jiggled the handle of the door. It was locked tight. Controlling her breath, just as Brakion had instructed her, Leah’s heart rate began to drop. Inhaling became easier. Her instincts commanded her to hide under the porch metal step, just in case Sparks could spot her in the light.
Returning down the step, she curved around to the other side of the platform. Leah lied down, resting her back on the cave floor. Inching backward, squeezing her way under the stair, she hid. If Leah had been just a year older, it wouldn’t be possible to fit underneath.
Gazing out from under the stairs, she could distinguish signs, painted on the metal beams. Hovering above the train tracks, the signs pointed the directions to the Districts of Mitton. Leah was positive that she escaped to the correct heading. Not knowing how far away her tormentor was located, seemed worse than actually seeing him. “He could pop out from anywhere,” she fretted.
The image of Pierre’s murder played like a film in her mind. Leah wept silently. Burning eyes, and flush cheeks, her nose filled with snot. Sniffing and wiping her nostrils with the back of her hand, Leah scrapped the clear gooey liquid onto her leg. There in the darkness, Leah questioned herself. “Did I get Pierre killed? Maybe I shouldn’t have made that man angry. If I was a good girl, maybe that man wouldn’t have hurt him? I just want my Mom. Please, I just want to go home.”
Leah’s terror heightened by the sound of a small stone rolling in the distance. It seemed to be accidentally kicked to the side; as if the stone had a mind of its own. Of course, Leah immediately figured out that someone was heading her way. Possibly this ‘Mister Sparks,’ was near?
Leah observed Kansas’ footprints hitting the dirty floor of the cave. “It has to be him,” she thought. Dragging to the left, a line appeared in the soil near the tracks. Kansas was injured. What seemed like floating blood droplets followed near those prints. She could see him, but Kansas couldn’t perceive where she hid. KLINK, KLINK, KLINK, was the sound of his boots hitting the step above her. Dirt and dust dropped into her eyes, the vibration of the thin metal above her shook from his weight.
From a few rusted holes in the metal, the sight of the red door handle moved. “I know you’re in here little girl. You can’t escape. Come out now and I’ll make it quick and painless.”
The katana blade could be viewed, floating in the air and slicing the door handle off. Forcefully kicking the door inward, nearly invisible, Kansas Sparks entered the shed. Standing still for a few moments, the stairs began to shake again as he descended down the step.
Observing the fresh footprints developing near the train tracks, Leah felt a sigh of relief. He walked further towards the direction of the Kashem District. She had successfully evaded him. Waiting cautiously for a few more minutes, she back crawled out from underneath the utility shed.
Now that the door was broken, Leah entered the utility room to see if any supplies would help her. The small room had shelves on each side; stocked full of tools, excess emergency sections of train track, and general first aid kits. Leah sifted through a few boxes when she came upon a green, wooden locker. Opening the lid, she found a radio set. Pulling it into the aisle, there was an inscription under the lid. It read:
1446 - GENESIS DISTRICT
2667 - RED OCEAN DISTRICT
3567 - MEZZO DISTRICT
4465 - LEEDWATER DISTRICT
5879 - KASHEM DISTRICT
6089 - XYLOCLOSTUS DISTRICT
7832 - OUTPOST SEVEN
The radio was a square, metallic orange box, with a digital display, white button keypad, and a small crank on top. Leah rolled the crank, then typed in the numbers 7832.
A woman’s husky voice answered through a vent on the top of the radio, “Tyra District, what is your emergency?”
“Help me. There is a man named Sparks trying to kill me. He already killed my friend Pierre.”
“Who is this? Is this a prank?”
“No, please my name is Leah Transmith. I live in the…”
“Leah? My god girl! AG Vol has the entire district looking for you! What part of the tunnel are you in?”
“I…I don’t know.”
“Look at the number above the door Leah.”
”It says number three point two five.”
“Listen, just stay put. I’m sending over officers from the Kashem and Mezzo Districts. It may be at least an hour before one of the crews get there. Lock the door and wait for the officers.”
“The door won’t lock. That Sparks guy cut off the handle. That’s how I got in here.”
“You need to hide Leah. Somewhere near that room so we can find.…”
“He’s wearing a suit that makes him invisible! He’ll kill your officers.” Leah interrupted.
“We’ll send a lot of officers Leah, don’t worry.”
“Okay.”
“If there are any problems, just call me back okay?”
“I’m scared,” she whimpered.
“I know you are honey, just do your best, okay? We are working hard to get to you.”
Leah moved onto her feet and looked around the room to find something to protect herself. There was a rivet gun in the corner, but it was too heavy to lift. Hanging on the wall, a series of wrenches were in reach. She grabbed an orange handled monkey wrench, and put it in her side pocket. On a shelf, she found a small spray gun full of green florescent paint.
Frantically, Leah tried to think of a way to block the door from the inside. Leah attempted to move the steel shelves to block the door, but the strength to do so eluded her. Realizing she was too exposed in a room with a broken door, and only one way out; Leah traveled back to her hiding spot under the step.
Again, under the steps, Leah concealed herself. Minutes seemed like hours. She wondered how her mother was doing. Would she be mad? Will she be punished? Leah strived to think of future possibilities. Anything would be a good distraction from Pierre’s image, and being hunted by a scary man.
Closing her eyes, she somehow felt safer. Constantly looking for Sparks to arrive back here was too stressful for her. Leah started to feel at ease. She knew there was no way for him to find her under here.
Just as Leah began to feel calm, something tugged at her leg. Two invisible hands grabbed her ankles and drug her out from underneath the utility steps. Leah’s hair swept up dirt like a broom. Her siren-like screams echoed through the tunnel.
Leah felt pressure against her throat as Kansas’ hand began to squeeze. Quickly she reached into her pocket and grasped onto the monkey wrench. Swinging wildly she hit something and rolled onto her feet. Swiftly thinking, she sprayed the invisible body with the paint gun. The paint continued to mist into the air until a light film covered Kansas’ body, making his cloaking suit obsolete.
Getting to his hands and knees, Kansas removed his hood. His balance wobbled. “Gotta give you….credit girl.” He vomited from the apparent vertigo, caused by the strike to the head. Getting up on his feet, his balance still shaky, he spoke again. Leah held the wrench with two hands after dropping the paint gun. “You would have….made a good….warrior. Unfortunately Dearie, you won’t….”
Leah didn’t give him time to finish his statement. She thrusted the wrench against his face with all her might. Kansas dropped to his knees, falling face down on the ground.
Leah hoped he wouldn’t get back up. She remembered seeing chains and locks inside the utility room. Flying into the utility shed, she grabbed the chains. Leah bravely planned on tying him to the steps. But when she
exited out of the room, there he stood with the katana in his hand again.
“Don’t you know, it’s rude to cut people off from what they are saying? I didn’t want to kill that boy you know, but he knew too much. You know too much also. I can’t let you live. I’m sorry,” Kansas vomited again, interrupting his sentence. “No matter how much you remind me of Melina, you must die.”
Puzzled by his mention of that name, she took a gamble of asking him a question, “Melina? My grandmother’s name was Melina Wayson.”
“That’s impossible little girl. Melina didn’t have any children.”
“Yes she did you lunatic! I’m her granddaughter!”
“What? My Melina had children?” he asked astounded and confused.
“You better get out of here Mister. Officers are on their way.”
“No, wait. I’m your grandfather. I won’t hurt you. I didn’t mean it. If I knew who you were…”
“You killed my friend you asshole! You’re a monster! I hope they shoot you dead!”
“Little girl, please I….aaaahhhh!” Kansas tried to reason with her, but was interrupted by blinding green paint sprayed into his eyes.
Leah struck him in the head again with the wrench. His katana plunged to the ground. Blood dripped from his skull. Kansas’ body fell limp, dropping to the gravel, on his side. He would not be waking anytime soon.
***
Hooves of war pigs charged through the tunnel. Leah heard the soldiers echoing closer. Twenty Kashem District officers, dressed in red armor, and yellow trim, with matching helmets; arrived, galloping on their war pigs. One of the young officers unsaddled his pig, and walked over to Leah.
“Wow,” he said. “A little girl took down public enemy number one. How’s that for strange?”
“He…he killed my friend. He…cut….his head off!” she wailed, tears poured down her face.