The Immortality Game

by Ted Cross

  Viktor laughed. “Our very own Romeo. You think that after everything that’s happened today this girl will have anything to do with you?”

  “She’ll come around,” Tavik said. “I’ll tuck her away in a safe house until she sees the light.”

  “No!” Viktor’s eyes flashed red. “She’s embarrassed our organization enough. I paid a lot of money for that war bot; I want to see it earn its keep. If she somehow manages to get to us here, then you can try out your fucking stun gun.”

  The big guard was back, followed by a hovering chair. Tyoma had been hovering on the edge of sleep until the door hissed open.

  “We’re gonna get you out of here,” the guard said. “Boss wants us all upstairs.”

  “What for?” Tyoma said. “Has the general come back already?”

  “Viktor doesn’t tell me shit. He said get upstairs fast, so that’s what I’m doing.”

  “You sure you’re supposed to bring me?”

  The guard paused at this as if the thought hadn’t occurred to him. He shook his head. “Didn’t say, but I was told not to let anyone near you. No one took back that order, so you’re coming with me.”

  The guard looked at the floating chair and pointed at a spot near Tyoma. “Over here, chair.”

  The chair aligned itself next to Tyoma’s gurney.

  “All right,” the guard said, “I’m gonna lift you over. Don’t do anything stupid or you’ll lose the other knee.”

  “What am I going to do?” Tyoma replied. “I’m sixty-nine years old and I make you nervous?”

  “Wise ass. Shut the fuck up.” The guard jammed his arms beneath Tyoma and lifted him with a grunt, then eased him onto the hovering chair. “Right, now follow me, chair.”

  The guard got the door open to let the chair slide out into the corridor. “This way.” He pulled a pistol from the inside of his jacket and walked down the hallway in the same direction Tyoma had tried to go earlier. The chair fell into place about two meters behind the man. Tyoma settled deeper into the chair and let his mind wander. Some time passed and the guard said, “Here’s the lift. This’ll be a little tricky. The chair won’t fit in right. I’d take the freight elevator but it doesn’t go all the way up.”

  A ping came from the lift and the door slid open. A vast hulk of a man slipped out. “Stop right there!” the guard shouted, leveling his pistol at the huge figure. Then he relaxed and lowered his weapon. “Oh, it’s you, Bunny. Glad to see you. Did Viktor send you?”

  The big man—Bunny?— just stood there, but a slender figure pushed around him from the lift and Tyoma recognized Kostya immediately. He grinned and waved.

  The guard lifted the pistol again. “Who the fuck are you?”

  Kostya held up his hands in a reassuring gesture and then pointed at Tyoma. “I’m one of his colleagues. I’m here to help.”

  “Sure, right,” the guard said. “Well, I don’t think we can all fit in the lift. Bunny, you’ll have to carry this guy. I think I can squeeze in with you. The professor here’ll have to wait his turn.”

  “Look, we can take him,” Kostya said. “We need to get him to the car.”

  “No dice,” the guard said. “Not till the boss says so. We’re going all the way up.”

  Kostya looked back and forth from the hulking Bunny to Tyoma. To Tyoma he said, “You all right?”

  Tyoma nodded and connected to Kostya via wireless. «Let the thug take me up. You hang around with your car until I call you, okay?»

  «Sure, I guess. I don’t like this. And there’s something you need to know about this guy you just called a thug.»

  «What’s that?»

  Bunny scooped Tyoma up like he weighed nothing and plodded toward the lift.

  «He’s you,» Kostya said.

  Tyoma chuckled, though he wasn’t sure he should at such a lame attempt at a joke. Bunny had trouble maneuvering them into the lift but finally got inside. The guard grimaced at the small space remaining before jamming himself in. There was no way Kostya could fit.

  “Take us to the top,” the guard said, and the lift door slid shut.

  «It’s no joke, Tyoma,» Kostya said, continuing the conversation via wireless. «Someone used your injector card on this man. It’s hard to believe after all the test failures, but it worked this time.»

  «No way,» was all Tyoma could think to say.

  «This Bunny character seems to be a mute, so that’s why you—the other you, I mean—are staying quiet. Just play along. Call him Bunny if you ever need to.»

  Tyoma’s mind spun. This was too much to grasp. They had tested the hell out of the injector cards and there was just no way he could believe it had worked on this man. It’s not even a clone of me! There’s no possible way it should work. Only once had a test appeared to work, but that chimp had shown signs of mental instability, so they had written the test off as a failure.

  The way Bunny was holding him in the lift, they were practically cheek to cheek. Tyoma examined Bunny the best he could. Bunny met his eyes and quirked his eyebrows.

  “Watch it there!” said the guard. “You’re squashing me!”

  Could that truly be me in there? Tyoma thought. Am I gazing into my own eyes? This is surreal. I thought this day couldn’t get any weirder.

  Bunny smiled at him.

  Too bad ‘my’ breath stinks.

  The lift slid to a halt and the door opened to show the same small vestibule Tyoma had visited earlier. The guard grunted and swore and finally managed to extricate himself from the lift. Bunny hugged Tyoma tighter and followed.

  “Too bad we couldn’t bring the chair,” the guard said. “You can set him down once we get inside.”

  The guard spread his arms to be scanned by the surveillance system. “We got an injured prisoner here. You’ll have to scan them together. Here, Bunny, just hold him up.”

  The scanner was finally satisfied and the inner steel doors slid upward to reveal a room packed with armed men. The evil face of Viktor was easy for Tyoma to pick out.

  “Hurry, get in here and let the door shut,” Viktor said. “You didn’t need to bring him.”

  “Sorry, boss,” the guard said. “You said to keep watch on him.”

  “Put him there,” Viktor said, pointing to the armchair Tyoma had used before. It was currently occupied by a tired-looking man with dirty-blond hair. “Get up, Tavik.”

  The blond man groaned and clambered up out of the chair, snatching up an odd-looking rifle that was leaning against one arm.

  Bunny trundled over and carefully set Tyoma down in the chair.

  “I think that’s about all of us,” Viktor said. “Now we wait and watch the show.”

  Tyoma noticed the displays that lit up the windows that used to show the cityscape. The biggest display showed an empty corridor lined with doors and a lift at one end. Other smaller displays showed other levels. Most, like the first, showed nothing of interest. Three displays had movement, and when Tyoma examined them he saw they were casino levels. People—wealthy-looking people—were filing out the doors toward tube lifts that Tyoma guessed went to the hotel towers.

  «Tyoma, you there?»

  «Dr. Saenz? It’s good to hear your voice again.»

  «If I’ve traced you correctly, you are at the top of the pyramid, right?»

  «Yes. I’m surrounded by gangsters.»

  «Are you the only innocent in the room?»

  «Innocent?»

  «If I have to hurt people there, I’d rather it be those who deserve it.»

  «I’ve, uh, well it’s hard to explain. There are two of us.»

  «I have your coordinates. Where is the other person?»

  «He’s kneeling right next to me, on my left.»

  «Whatever happens, make sure your friend stays next to you. Don’t move unless you must, and leave your wireless active.»

  Suddenly there was an odd movement in the largest display. A steel monstrosit
y scuttled into view on spidery limbs. Where Tyoma imagined the many eyes of a spider might be there was instead a veritable forest of jutting barrels and tubes. It had been years since Tyoma had seen these on the news vids depicting the war that spread from the Baltic countries down through Bulgaria. A war bot! What are they doing with one of those? The bots on both sides of the conflict had turned the already bloody affair into a slaughter of epic proportions for two years, until the Germans developed an antidote for them—gassy clouds of nanobots that ‘infected’ the war bots and made them instantly obsolete. The allied forces had pushed all the way into Ukraine before Russia managed to develop their own nanobot defenses.

  “What’s going on here?” Tyoma asked.

  “Shut up, old man,” said the blond man Viktor had called Tavik.

  “No need to be rude.” Viktor walked over and placed a hand on Tyoma’s shoulder. “I’m very sorry about your knee. I’ll look into what happened once I have time. Let’s just say we’re having a little test of our defensive systems today.”

  “Is it the general?” Tyoma said.

  Viktor laughed. “What could make you think that? No, don’t worry. Relax and watch. Would you like something to eat? A drink? Bunny, get this gentleman whatever he needs.”

  Bunny grunted and knelt down next to Tyoma as Viktor walked closer to the vid screens. Tyoma wished there was a way to talk to Bunny, but his wireless wasn’t designed to send call requests to himself. “Thank you…‌friend,” he whispered. “I don’t think I’ll be ordering anything for now.”

  Bunny stared into Tyoma’s eyes for a long time before grunting again and standing back up.

  “Viktor, why don’t you shut down the lifts?” Tavik said. “Pop some gas in there and it’s all done…‌easy.”

  “You must be joking,” Viktor replied, rubbing his hands together. “I’m looking forward to this.”

  Moscow

  Sunday, June 8, 2138

  11:07 p.m. MSK

  Marcus waited outside the ladies room, trying to think of something he could say to dissuade Zoya from her current course. The idea of speaking with his backstabbing father again didn’t thrill him, but he didn’t see much choice, and his father might really be able to help in a situation like this.

  This level seemed to be a spa, all glass walls, swimming pools and baths, exercise machines, and massage tables. When they’d come off the lift, two ladies in tights had been directing people toward a set of larger lifts on the opposite side of the long central corridor. When Marcus had come out of the bathroom the place was deserted.

  «Papa?»

  «Yes, I’m here.»

  «I’m really angry with you.»

  «I’m your father. I’m trying to save your life, which for some reason you seem intent on throwing away.»

  «Why don’t you make things easier on both of us and treat Zoya as if she’s part of the family?»

  «She’s not part—»

  «I don’t care! I’m not leaving her to her fate. If you really want me to survive this, make sure we both do.»

  «What do you want from me? You need to get out of this place. Do you have any idea what they are preparing for you?»

  «Something bad, I’m sure. Isn’t there anything you can do about it?»

  «Perhaps. There aren’t so many cameras, so I can’t find everyone. If I can locate the right people, I can help.»

  «I thought you spoke with them, you know, to cut your deal to betray Zoya?»

  «I did, but there are many signals located on the top floor and I have no way of knowing how many may be innocents. Despite what you think of me right now, I don’t enjoy the thought of harming so many people unnecessarily.»

  «This could all end, just like that,» Marcus said. «Zoya will have nothing left…»

  «I’ll do it if I must. Why don’t you talk her into leaving?»

  «You think I haven’t tried? Why don’t you shut down the lifts? Then she can’t go up there.»

  «They are on the private security system; I can’t touch them. I need you to stall her for, I don’t know, perhaps ten minutes. Either that or get her to go back down to the level you came from and take the central lift.»

  «Why?»

  «The way she’s headed is too dangerous. I can clear the way, but I need to break through the firewall of the bot they have up there, and it’s not a simple firewall. If she takes the central lift it goes all the way to the top, but that lift doesn’t stop on this floor.»

  The door to the women’s room opened and Zoya slipped out. Outside of her obvious battering, she looked exhausted. She turned immediately toward the lift.

  “Wait!” Marcus cried. She halted and looked back at him. “Can we please talk?”

  “Why? You’re not stopping me.”

  “So your life here is ruined, I get that. What if I can take you away from here? To…‌to anywhere! Where have you always dreamed of living? A nice sandy beach?”

  Zoya scowled. “My mother’s apartment…‌with my mother and brother.”

  “I understand. Truly. But think beyond that for a second. You can still have a life. A great life. We can bring Irina if you like.”

  “Tell you what,” Zoya said, “after every last one of these bastards is dead, then you can talk to me all you want. For now either go away or stay out of my way.”

  Marcus ran to intercept her before she entered the lift. He was afraid to touch her. It felt wrong, but as she placed one foot on the lift he decided he had no choice and wrapped both arms around her middle.

  “What are you doing!” she cried in obvious outrage, glaring back toward him the best she could over her pinned arms.

  “I’m sorry. Please don’t hurt me. You need to listen. We—”

  She jabbed an elbow into his paunch, spun out of his loosened arms, and shoved him to the floor. “Don’t you ever touch me! You hear me?” Her face was flushed; the bruises gave her a look like something from a horror vid.

  Marcus put a hand to his stomach and sucked in a breath. He scrambled to his feet as Zoya turned back to the lift. As she entered the lift and told the lift to take her to the top, Marcus dove forward and jammed himself in with her before the door slid shut. Zoya held the pistol up near her face with both hands as the lift began to rise.

  “You shouldn’t have come,” she said. “I’d suggest you get down low and stay there, unless you wish to get shot.”

  Still struggling to breathe, Marcus squatted between Zoya and the lift door. «Papa, you’ve got to hurry with whatever you’re doing. We’ll be there in a few seconds.»

  «Can’t talk now. Have to focus everything on breaking through to this bot’s code.»

  Sweat trickled down Marcus’s nose. He tasted salt on his lips. His father hadn’t said what this bot was that awaited them, but it couldn’t be good. He glanced up at Zoya and saw a grim, determined set to her mouth. God, she’s beautiful. Dear Lord, I’ve never asked you for anything, but please let me save her.

  The lift slowed, and Marcus knew the door would slide aside in the next few seconds.

  Zoya knew that her extreme anger at Marcus was mostly irrational. But this was her moment. This was the time she could do what was necessary to honor the memory of her loved ones who had died this day. And this American seemed intent to get in her way and divert her attention from what she had to do.

  As the lift slowed, her heart began to race and she embraced the now-familiar slowing of time. She began to lower the Gsh-18 handgun toward the lift entrance, taking aim, and prayed to take out as many of the bastards as she could. The lift stopped, the door began to slowly slide to the side…‌and Marcus rammed himself upright in front of her, his shoulder knocking her gun hand aside.

  The outrage she felt at his action began to well up in her throat, but she shoved it down again as she peered over Marcus’s shoulder at the long carpeted hallway outside and saw what awaited them. There were no mobsters there. Instead there was
a monster out of her worst nightmares. A dull metallic spider-like horror bristling with enough barrels to mow down an army. An eternity stretched between each of her heartbeats. What couldn’t have been more than a second since the lift opened felt more like an hour. Yet she was paralyzed, unable to make a decision.

  Ever so slowly, Marcus screamed out, “Nooooooooooooooo!” just as one of the barrels began to spit minute slivers of steel. So slowly did time appear to move now that Zoya saw three of the slivers exit the barrel. There should have been a continuous stream of them, but there were just three and none of the other guns fired.

  Zoya felt Marcus’s body jerk as the shards found their mark. She couldn’t hear herself, yet she knew she was screaming as she wrapped her arms around Marcus and cradled him as he slid to the floor of the lift.

  The spider bot seemed lifeless now.

  Marcus felt nothing, but his body wouldn’t respond to his commands. Twice he’d been punched in the gut and once in the chest, as if a boxing champ was using him for practice, but there was no pain. «Papa?»

  «You’re alive!» There was clear relief in his father’s voice. «I did it, Marcus! I broke through one of the strongest firewalls faster than I ever thought I could manage it.»

  Marcus felt numb tingling begin to spread outward from his chest and belly. «I…‌I think I’m in trouble.»

  «Marcus?» Now there was fear in Javier’s voice.

  «I think…‌I’m in trouble.»

  He was lying on his back now, feet sticking out from the lift. Zoya was a blur, kneeling above him, weeping and pressing her hands into his chest.

  «Aw, Marcus! I’m calling for an ambulance, the police, everyone! Just…‌just don’t die on me!»

  Marcus tried to focus his eyes so he could see Zoya for the last time. He wanted to smile at her and tell her…‌something. He couldn’t quite think what it was, and the world began to dim. Is Papa really crying? He’d never heard such a thing before.

  «I’m so sorry,» he heard his father’s voice say from far away. «Sorry I failed you.»

  How much time had passed Zoya didn’t know. Her hands were soaked with Marcus’s blood. She’d held them to his belly long after his chest stopped moving. I did this, she kept thinking over and over again. I got him killed. I refused to listen to him.