Floor 21- Dark Angel

by Jason Luthor

  “He trained you?”

  “Yeah. Abbott got us halfway down the Tower before he had to turn around. After that it was up to . . .” Just as I’m about to say it, I can feel my throat closing up and this pressure filling my chest, to the point that I can barely get the last few words out. “Up to Jackie.”

  Out of the corner of my eye, I see Dodger starting to reach out to me. “Tommy. You okay?”

  “Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine. I guess I didn’t expect to just choke up like that.”

  From her side of the table, I watch Cynthia put her fork down and set her towel in her lap. “It’s funny because all of you have mentioned her, but none of you ever talk a lot about her. Not even Mike, and I know that . . . Well, that they were interested in each other.”

  Mike smiles. “Yeah. Best way to describe it. We met at the wrong ages and kept missing each other after that.” His smile doesn’t last long before he looks over at me. “Why don’t we . . . Why don’t we talk about her more, Tommy? We ever done it since we came to Central?”

  “No. Not . . . Not seriously, anyway. I mean, it’s tough.” Even as I’m trying to bring it up, I can feel myself breathing hard, like I’m running a marathon. It takes me a second before I’m able to look Cynthia in the eyes. “Jackie . . . Jackie was special. To all of us. She was at least as smart as Dodger and definitely the best fighter out of all of us. You know how they promoted me so fast once I got here?”

  “How couldn’t I? I think you set a record.”

  “Well, Jackie would’ve been on the War Council by now, the way she fought. I think she saved our lives more times than I can count. I mean, we’ve all got stories.”

  Dodger laughs. “Dozens of them’s more like it. You remember when she kept me from getting swallowed alive by what was literally a living wall of Creep?”

  Cynthia’s eyes light up at the mention of it. “What are you talking about?”

  “Oh, just your average people eating wall,” she says. “I joke, but that’s literally what it was. A wall of Creep opened up next to us and almost ate me alive. It dragged me by a tendril, and I was about five seconds from getting chomped when Jackie sliced it in half.”

  “Oh, wow. That’s . . . that’s pretty amazing.”

  Mike taps the table. “Don’t forget, she’s the one that kept me from going crazy down there. When you all rescued me from that insane scientist, David Marshall, she kept me from losing my mind.” He waves a finger near his temple. “Psychic link, or whatever it was, almost made me lose my mind. Commander Abbott took half a grenade to the chest, and Jackie wasn’t much better. She took a bullet to the chest for the commander, then walked up a flight of stairs to talk to me. If she hadn’t calmed me down, I’d have brought the Tower crashing down on everyone.”

  “I remember you mentioning that. You told me she saved your life from that crazy man. You didn’t tell me she’d taken a bullet right before that.”

  “Betrayed by another Scavenger. Pretty sad.”

  It’s my turn to interrupt. “Let’s not forget the fact that she beat down what was practically an immortal, Creep infested superhuman. If that’s not amazing . . .”

  Cynthia shakes her head. “No, you’re right. It is amazing. All of you always say how incredible she was, but you never say why. I guess I understand now.”

  “No.” I feel my eyes sink to the table. “All of us owe her our lives, but that’s not why she was amazing. She was amazing because she was always there for us. Even when it was tearing her apart, she was always trying to put us first. Just one example? She always took time out to talk to Dodger about tech stuff and computers, the kind of things that keep Dodger going.”

  I see Dodger cross her arms. “That is very true, not gonna lie. It was always nice to have another girl around to talk to about science stuff. She was more into biology, but the girl was smart. Of course, her parents were scientists, so that totally makes sense.”

  “Exactly. And with Mike . . .” I look over at him. It’s a sensitive topic, and I wait for a second while he gathers himself. He clears his throat as he leans into the table and folds his hands.

  “Yeah,” he begins. “Yeah. After we left Commander Abbott, started heading deeper . . . I don’t know, you know? Just, started losing it. Kind of because of what I’d seen, and kind of because of what my connection to the Creep was doing to me. She was . . . she was always taking time out for me. At my worst, when I didn’t even think I . . . had a reason to be around. Didn’t know why I should keep going.”

  I can see Cynthia’s brow tightening up as she leans halfway across the table. Her hands are already wrapping around his wrist. “What do you mean, Mikey? You didn’t know why to keep going? You mean, with the team?” He doesn’t say anything for a second, and I can’t help but see her fingers tighten. “Or, are you talking about something else? Something worse?”

  “Don’t know, babe,” he says as he wipes a hand down his face. “Got to understand, that connection to the Creep was really messing with my head. It was keeping me from ever really getting over what happened to my old team. I guess I was just depressed all the time. Didn’t know what I had to offer anyone. Jackie, she . . . Jackie was carrying her own problems, but never put them on me. She kept me going when, I mean, if she hadn’t . . . I might not be here right now.”

  “Mikey. You don’t still feel that way, do you?”

  Mike’s eyes spring alive as he looks over at her, his hand closing on hers. “No way. Like I said, Jackie really helped me out. Showed me I got to have something to fight for. I do. You know I do. This place. Mandy. You. I’m happy out here.”

  “Okay. Okay, just . . . If you ever do feel like that . . .”

  “Hey. You hear everything I worry about. Promise I’m not close to the way I used to be.”

  I slide a hand forward, trying to get Cynthia’s attention. “Once Mike’s connection to the Creep wore off, he was a lot better. Honestly though, Jackie really helped him before that. She helped me, too. She was always putting everyone else ahead of her. That’s, I think, the biggest thing that I’ll take away from knowing her. It wasn’t that she was a great fighter or knew how to plan ahead. I mean, she could do both of those things. But, what really made Jackie stand out was how she was always making sure we were okay. To a fault. I mean, I had to sit her down one time and almost beg her to open up to us a little more. She set the example though. You can ask Mike or Dodger, and they’ll both tell you that I try to lead the way I think she would.”

  It takes Cynthia a second to say anything. She smiles at Mike and nods before pulling his hands into her lap. “She sounds like she was an amazing fighter, but not the kind of leader some of the officers around here are.”

  “No. Not even close,” I say with a shake of my head. “If you want to know the real reason I’m not big on the Advisory Council’s push to link back up with Fort Silence, it’s because of Jackie and what living in the Tower was like. We come from a place where asking questions could get your brain washed and everything was ruled by the military. It was just constant martial law, even when you couldn’t see any guards around. We were always monitored, almost around the clock. All of us hated that, but Jackie’s the one who did something about it. She nearly got herself brainwashed in the process, but she was constantly sneaking around the Tower and looking for answers. When people talk about Supreme General Suliman and the way things operate up at the Fort, it sounds way too close to the place we left behind. Jackie would hate it if Central ever agreed to operate like a dictatorship.”

  “I get it. I mean, why else would you be so fond of her. I even get why you wouldn’t like Yousef Suliman. This Jackie girl must have been very special. It sounds like she left a big impression on you.”

  “Yeah. I mean . . .” I feel my throat tighten up again as I’m about to say it, and even the corners of my eyes start burning. Dodger’s hand is suddenly on my knee, and I can feel her other hand on my shoulder. “She died for us, you know?” I’m finally able to say
it, and when I do, I have to seriously work to hold back the tears. “We don’t talk about it much because it was . . . I’d never seen someone die in front of me like that, and then . . . then it was her. In my arms. I had to . . . had to clean the blood out of my clothes . . .”

  “Tommy.” Cynthia’s voice catches me, and I realize there’s a door clicking shut down the hall. My sleeves wipe at my eyes just in time for me to hear Mandy’s feet stomping down the hall. I’ve barely got my head turned back when she explodes into the room, her eyes finding the food and shooting open. She looks like a starved person as she grabs at a plate.

  “I guess it’s too hard for anyone to wait for me to get here before everyone starts eating,” she complains as her hands grab at ladles and spoons, her plate piling up with food faster than you might think’s possible. Her plates crashing down on the table as she swings into the chair, her eyes glowing as she looks at her meal. They’re like these two brown pools looking out from between the short curtains of hair that frame her face. “Oh, hi everyone, by the way,” she says as grabs at her fork.

  “Hey there, short stack.” I can’t help but laugh as she starts digging into her food. “How was school?”

  “You know it was awful. I always tell you it was awful,” she says without pausing for even a second from eating. “I couldn’t wait to get out. But then I was betrayed by my family, who all started eating without me. I guess that’s life in the Deadlands.”

  Cynthia reaches to her side and wraps Mandy up in a side hug. “Mijita mi vida,” she says as she squeezes her sister. “You always find something to complain about something. You should like school.”

  “Why? So I can keep learning how to plant potatoes?”

  “You don’t have to be a farmer.”

  “But all they say in school is that the most important job to do is grow food for everyone.”

  I can’t help but interrupt. “Now, Mandy. You’ve got a long time to figure out what you want to be, but there’s nothing wrong with farming. How else do you think your sister put together your dinner?”

  “She summoned it with magic. Or Pocket Space.” She rolls her eyes at Cynthia, who’s giving her a scowl. “I’m obviously kidding. Thank you for dinner.”

  “It’s about time you said thank you.”

  Mandy ignores her as she takes another bite from her plate. “So, what was everyone talking about?”

  Mike fakes a punch to her arm. “Old friends. You know, just like the ones you have at school.”

  “Oh, I was supposed to ask if I could stay over at Angie’s house tomorrow?”

  By that time, the conversation’s completely off the rails. I don’t know. It’s probably for the best. Nothing good ever comes from just sitting in your own depression. Mike’s suddenly looking lively, and Mandy’s talking nonstop about how terrible her classes were. Cynthia’s got her arm around her sister, and just seeing the three of them over there, loving on each other . . . Well, does life really get better than that?

  PRELUDE TO WAR

  Dodger’s Recording 03

  Leaving Central Freedom sort of feels like traveling to another world. Because the city’s on an island, you have to take a bridge. Freedom Bridge, because we don’t have much imagination when it comes to naming things around here. It’s the newest bridge out of all of them. At least, as far as I can tell. The others were built a long time before the August War, which is easy to tell from all the brickwork and suspension cables. Freedom Bridge is different. It’s almost all steel and support columns. No cables like the other bridges. Even when you get out of Central, you’re still not on the mainland. There’s actually another island there. Second Freedom.

  See what I said about us not having much of an imagination?

  Second Freedom’s where the first colonies were created. As time went on, most of the island was reclaimed. Between Central and Second, there’s hundreds of thousands of people living in the area. Second’s not nearly as safe as Central though, mostly because it doesn’t have a repulsion field covering the city. That leaves it more open to attacks from the Creep, plus it’s also closer to the mainland, which means raiders are more of a threat. Still, Central tries to provide as much protection as possible for its colonies, mostly by keeping the militia deployed most of the year. That leaves Central pretty open to attack itself, but again . . . it’s an island. It’s pretty easy to defend. The gun emplacements and bunkers on our side of the bridges can protect the city from most invaders.

  Second’s got some pretty big guns on their bridges too, so at least it has that going for it. It’s really not the raiders you have worry about as much as the Creep. Although most of the island’s secured, there are still stretches in the middle where the Creep pops up now and then. It’s spontaneous, but when it happens, it hit like a smack to the face. A lot of people think there’s probably some massive Pocket Space engine sitting out there that hasn’t been secured. So, every now and then, Second sends out burn teams. We’re talking about these huge, hulking suits of power armor loaded up with flame throwers on their wrists. It’s cool to watch. It also makes me wish we had more power armor. It’d make our jobs a lot safer, but whatever Apeiron and Carthage did with the armor, there’s not much of it around anymore At least, not that we can find.

  So, that’s Second in a nutshell. It’s still daytime by the time we park, and it doesn’t take long to get settled in for the night at one of the local garrisons. Almost the second we come to a stop, the back doors of the transport are opening up and Tommy’s there, waving everyone out. Mike’s already with him, and I try and not to keep them waiting. We’re supposed to be the leaders here, but I can tell some of the younger guys on the team don’t trust us. It’s been almost a year since we first came to Central, but a lot of the militia still thinks of us as outsiders. Not all of them, but just enough to make me uncomfortable.

  Anyway, I’m standing by Tommy almost the second I get the chance, and he’s already got his tablet and looking my way. “Lieutenant Anne?”

  “Captain.” It’s weird going by titles, but the militia’s a real stickler for going by the book. Which is funny, considering how few of the senior officers actually play it that way themselves. “Everything okay so far?”

  “So far, so good. You’ll want to run your guys through a gear check real quick, just to make sure nothing got left behind. If there’s anything you need, let me know and I’ll run it by the local garrison.”

  The city garrisons are the heart of Central and Second’s defense plans. They keep a supply of weapons, vehicles, and men on alert watch at all times. Fortunately, they also have lots of little amenities that make life easier. Need a nap? There’s beds. Think you’ll need a little extra firepower? Check with the sergeant at arms.

  Think you . . . think you need a little something to take the edge off after coming back from the Deadlands? Every garrison’s got a bar on the premises. Just, don’t be irresponsible. You don’t want to end up tossed in a cell until you dry out. Things are pretty stressful protecting against the Creep, so the only rule on drinking is don’t get so drunk that you start fights or can’t shoot straight if the Creep invades.

  Anyway, I do like Tommy says and run the guys through a check of their gear. It’s better than what we pack in the Tower, that’s for sure. Back then, we had to scrap together old military and police gear to survive when we were Scavengers. Central’s got it way better. They’ve got old Carthaginian and Apeiron gear that they’ve found as they’ve explored more of the Deadlands. The gear we roll with when we’re in the Deadlands is pretty sweet. Body armor, helmets, and guns are standard. I’m personally more of a fan of the visors on the helmet, which help keep you from going blind when concretes being chewed up by bullets. The visors also filter light, so they can protect your vision from bright lights, like from explosions. The night vision’s pretty cool, too. The only thing our armor doesn’t really protect against are energy weapons, but those are so rare that it’s not a huge deal. The guns most peopl
e pack are bullet based, because you can make more bullets. It’s a lot harder to make the energy cells that energy weapons need.

  After the gear checks are over, everyone enjoys a little downtime. Everyone on the team’s been past the bridges before. No Deadland rookies in our sections. Which doesn’t mean we think things will go smoothly once we’re on the mainland. What happens past the bridges isn’t something you can control though, so the teams try and take it easy. Some of them hang out at the bar. Not that they’re drinking. That would be a huge problem if they were doing that right before a mission. No, most of them sit around, playing a few rounds of cards, grabbing food, or talking to some old friends who live out in the colonies. A few of the guys bed down for a while. It’s just time to burn until things get dark and we have to cross Deadman’s Bridge to the mainland. The idea of waiting until dark’s that maybe we can avoid raiders spotting us on the move. That’s the whole point behind leaving the transports behind, too.

  It doesn’t take too long for night to fall, and once it does, we’re out of the garrison and on our way. Deadman’s Bridge, like most of the bridges around Central, actually has a walkway underneath it. I’m guessing that, whenever the world was normal, it made a nice view of the bay. These days, we use the walkway whenever we’re crossing into the Deadlands but need to stay, you know, discreet.

  Once we’re under the bridge and walking, things stay pretty quiet. It’s a little intimidating, actually, to be walking across when the skies are pitch black. The clouds over the city don’t break too often, so at night, things go absolutely dark. When you’re in the Deadlands, you have to make a choice. Do you use your night vision? Because, if you do, you’re going to eat up the battery really fast. That’s why night vision’s only allowed when a fight breaks out, or when we really need to sneak somewhere quiet. So, we use flashlights instead. Except, we don’t use them under the bridge. Why?

  For the same reason we leave after dark. So the raiders don’t see any signs of us coming. It’s basically impossible to tell when they might be watching from one of the towers on the other side of the bay. So, there we are, under the bridge, the walkway shaking every time a strong wind decides to blow through. You can barely see anything five feet in front of you, so you just have to hope you don’t go running into the person you’re following. Every once in a while, I take a peek over the railing and back toward the island. It’s a little comforting to see the lights from the colonies still shining. What’s really nice to see is Central. The Green Zone gives off this really bright, green aura that lights up the sky. The lights from Central and the colonies around it are at least bright enough that we can just see the walkway underneath us. Otherwise, it’d feel like we were about to just plunge straight into the water.