He looked at me with his grossly bloody face and said, "Sister, we'll get them yet."
Nic coughed. Ephesus looked over and grinned, "And, I guess, if we've got you, too, you might as well join us."
"Well I'll take you. Or at least I'll take Philadelphia. With her trouble-making skills and unending passion for crazy schemes, we can't fail."
And I don't think I cared that I was in a police vehicle, headed to who knows where.
Nic sat back against his seat, alternatively looking through the glass that separated him from the sites of the city through which he was being transported, and down at the glass that had lodged in his chest. It wasn't painful, it must have just caught on his clothes or got him in the flesh somewhere. And bleeding was minimal. Not much of a wound at all.
Nic was not one to bemoan the missing glory of a lame wound. He could do well with just a shard of glass. He pulled it out, and after the searing pain of separating it from his skin, he didn't really care anymore. They had handcuffed him, hand and foot, and his seat belt was tightened and winched beyond the point of comfort. Basically he could control everything above his neck. That was enough for him, in most cases.
The car rolled on, deeper into a boundless Outside on which the sun never set. Towers rose around and giant statues proclaimed their dominance, but all Nic heard in their speeches was the theories of engineering that built every statue alike. He was being trucked through a sinister domain to say the least, but he was sure he could match it, if not in strength, in cunning.
And he wasn't half bad at being sinister, either.
And that, my friends, is the last of the regular installments of the pre-publication Red Rain sequel.
I have decided to end constant publication for a few key reasons. First, anything I publish now, especially lately, is heavily subject to revision. Already certain plot elements are inconsistent with the revised (or in-the-works) revised portions of this sequel. So I can't really write "the ending" because if I did I would have to choose an ending that fits this version not at all or one that has nothing to do with how the final version will end. To avoid confusion on both of our parts, dear reader, I call an end to the blog version of this novel (yes, I said it).
Second, and the reason you probably first guessed, I do want to publish this thing eventually. And having a full and complete version on a website free to the public is contrawise to good marketing strategy.
Third, I need to get back to those revisions, and the planning work with the one-and-only Aubrey Hansen. There is promoting to do, writing to do, revising to do, and lots of heated arguments with the real author of this stuff (not really). Actually, Aubrey has let me in on easy terms.
So now, dear friends, you must wait like normal readers for the final products. Do you want a few hints about what the changes might be?
You do?
How quaint.
Ok, fine.
1. Philli will get her Philliness back. We will give her back her nature that she had before, instead of the Philli that I created for the blog version when I realized that I couldn't take 30 minutes each Philli blog post just to get myself in the Philli mood by reading Red Rain.
2. The United will get some it's Unitedness back. Aubrey and I are working together to make sure the United doesn't change too drastically from the United ya'll knew back in RR1.
3. A spantabulous ending that Aubrey and I just love.
And if that's not enough for you, just take my word that the final product will be somewhere around 3.14 times as cool as this one was. So... why don't you comment and tell me what number this story would get if you multiplied it by that decimal number? And you can just multiply by 3, if you want, or 4 if you want to be generous, or just multiply 1 if you want to be redundant. Just tell me which operation you're doing!
Showing posts with label Red Rain Fanfic. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Red Rain Fanfic. Show all posts
Friday, October 5, 2012
Saturday, September 15, 2012
Crook Q Part 36 & Philli 34
"And why would I help someone like you?"
"Well, if maybe, we had Cea with us. Wouldn't want to send people our way then, would you?"
"Oh you are a devil."
"Innocent as pigeons," Augustine hissed in Nic's ear, "Sly as serpents." Then Stanyard made a quick move and drew Nic's gun out of this pocket.
"Now. What were you up to, again?"
And so Nic was forced to spill it all. Besides, he reasoned, he was in too deep now to avoid working with these people. Either he would work with them or he might as well be in their prison. Besides, with this new development, he would need their help.
Augustine flipped on the lights and the two of them descended. Everyone down below woke up rather quickly, and watched in silence as Nic came down first. As Stanyard reached the floor Cea just whispered, "What'd he do?"
Nic answered, "It's not what I did that's of consequence, but what I discovered that matters most."
"He is right," said Stanyard. "Albeit, he discovered it by stealing my computer and hacking through United files, but that's irrelevant now that I have his gun."
No one knew what to make of that. Nic filled the silence, "I discovered a great deal in the United official personnel files. I am legally dead, Cea is legally transferred to a Mars colony..."
She interrupted, "I did what? There is no such thing!"
"Exactly, sister. Ephesus is still dead in an exploded transport. Smyrna's information says he works as a lab-tech in a space-parts factory."
"Which I do."
"And Phili's says that she is religiously a zealot but politically conformed."
The girl began to object but Nic just kept going, "And, to my great amusement, it says specifically that she is not a trouble maker."
Nic watched with smoldering disgust the coy grin that spread on the Christian maid's face. He didn't know what he wanted to do to her, but whatever it was, he knew he was dying to do it.
"Get to the point, Nic," Stanyard interjected.
Ephesus was ready for anything, "Yeah, I doubt all you did was rehash your knowledge of all of our personal histories. If that is all, I would have preferred to remain asleep."
"Well you should be glad we got you up," said Nic.
Stanyard pushed Nic aside to assert his dominance. "Nic found a communications entry saying that a new industry has begun on Rott, the prison island from whence Nic came here."
"A delightful place, let me assure you. The hairstylist culture is a little crude, but otherwise..." With a look Stanyard silenced the doctor.
"They've started making what they call 'Red Rain,' there."
A gasp rippled through everyone in the basement who hadn't heard it already. The silence afterward was tangible.
Ephesus looked over at Nic, the hostility in his gaze latent, "And how, Doctor, is that possible?"
"I finished it the night before the escape. You almost had it, old man," Smyrna would have none of it.
"It's Thomas Smyrna."
Ephesus punctuated, "And I'll knock your block off before I hear you call him anything else again, especially as I am fairly mindful to do it right now anyway. You mean you gave them the weapon and then proceeded to run away?"
"I downloaded the chemistry onto our microchip."
"My. Microchip. My microchip. I hadn't even thought of it since we left there."
"The microchip that was in our possession. But apparently a ghost version remained on the cloud that they decoded."
Ephesus rolled his eyes, "Philli could decode a ghost file without too much trouble. It's not that difficult."
The doubtfulness of the statement was obvious on Philadelphia's face. Ephesus launched, "So what you are saying is, that despite all your intelligence with chemicals and radioactive isotopes, you made the dumbest error none to hacking? I'd say that between your computer ineptitude and utter lack of people skills, you have your life fairly fouled up, and a few others beside!"
"Don't forget my lack of religion. That has to be on the list somewhere."
Ephesus was furious, and stood up about ready to finish off his threat. Cea grabbed his arm and pulled him back down.
Stanyard drew both guns. "You obviously don't realize how important time is. Nic connected that computer to the internet. They will know I am still here. They'll pounce on us at any moment. We have to scatter."
My daddy stood up to that. "We will do know such thing. We're done being pulled around by the schemes of all you people involved in the world's affairs. We are getting out, together. We'll go back to the camp before we'll separate again."
I hoped my face showed that I was resolved with him. Ephesus' face did.
I watched the other half of the room react. It was three versus three.
Nic chuckled, "You know you can't go back? You're all criminals now. Even Miss Philadelphia." I felt blood drain out of my face as I caught on. "You are all thieves and murderers, in the truest sense of the word. Philadelphia shot a man in the stomach and assisted in the murder of several others. Several of you have illegal cell phones. You can't just go back to camp."
Stanyard countered, "No they can't, but they can go to safe-houses. We can keep them safe."
Nic stood up, "Except for one large problem. Two words. Red Rain."
I didn't get it. "Why is that a problem? The United has had weapons of mass destruction for a long time. They won't turn them on us."
Everyone but me bit their lower lip. They all looked around, trying to see who else was in the know. Apparently I was the only one who didn't get it.
My daddy leaned down to me, "Philadelphia, dear, it's not quite like that. There's a civil war brewing. Once one side has Red Rain, it will start. And we're all bound to be caught in the cross fire."
A civil war? in the United? Wasn't that an oxymoron?
Nic finished off for me, "See, pretty girl, on one side is the tyrants who just want control of everything. On the other side are some idealists who want freedom for everyone. They both lobbied me for Red Rain, and in fact, I signed with both. Once they have it, they'll use it to wipe out their resistance."
I still didn't see how us little Christians needed to be involved, but I was sure I didn't like Nic's new nickname for me. "But we're not on a side. We just follow Christ and obey."
Cea got me this time, "But you see, Phil, there's just the thing. We might be able to survive a war. It might even help us. But millions will die. Millions, Phil."
Was everyone against me? "But it's not our job to fix all the wars. It's not our fault. We aren't going to fire the rockets.
Ephesus knelt next to me, "Philli, remember the last time someone had Red Rain?"
Boy did I ever.
"Someone else had Red Rain, and he was going to hurt people. Lot's of innocent people. And even if he didn't use it, he was going to threaten them all with it and other weapons. It's the same thing again except someone else has it."
I looked over at the someone. This was his fault. All of it.
"So you see," the someone said, "You've all got your feet stuck in this one. Mister Thomas Smyrna over there did most of the work; Ephesus did some; I did the rest; Stanyard hid me; Cea supported us all and shot a few people; we lit a laboratory on fire, blew up a few elevators, and now they have my weapon."
"So what are we going to do about it?" I exploded.
Stanyard looked at his guns. Ephesus smiled, and Nic did the same, in his old creepy smile of mastery.
Oh. So that was what we were going to do. I didn't like it.
"Well, if maybe, we had Cea with us. Wouldn't want to send people our way then, would you?"
"Oh you are a devil."
"Innocent as pigeons," Augustine hissed in Nic's ear, "Sly as serpents." Then Stanyard made a quick move and drew Nic's gun out of this pocket.
"Now. What were you up to, again?"
And so Nic was forced to spill it all. Besides, he reasoned, he was in too deep now to avoid working with these people. Either he would work with them or he might as well be in their prison. Besides, with this new development, he would need their help.
Augustine flipped on the lights and the two of them descended. Everyone down below woke up rather quickly, and watched in silence as Nic came down first. As Stanyard reached the floor Cea just whispered, "What'd he do?"
Nic answered, "It's not what I did that's of consequence, but what I discovered that matters most."
"He is right," said Stanyard. "Albeit, he discovered it by stealing my computer and hacking through United files, but that's irrelevant now that I have his gun."
No one knew what to make of that. Nic filled the silence, "I discovered a great deal in the United official personnel files. I am legally dead, Cea is legally transferred to a Mars colony..."
She interrupted, "I did what? There is no such thing!"
"Exactly, sister. Ephesus is still dead in an exploded transport. Smyrna's information says he works as a lab-tech in a space-parts factory."
"Which I do."
"And Phili's says that she is religiously a zealot but politically conformed."
The girl began to object but Nic just kept going, "And, to my great amusement, it says specifically that she is not a trouble maker."
Nic watched with smoldering disgust the coy grin that spread on the Christian maid's face. He didn't know what he wanted to do to her, but whatever it was, he knew he was dying to do it.
"Get to the point, Nic," Stanyard interjected.
Ephesus was ready for anything, "Yeah, I doubt all you did was rehash your knowledge of all of our personal histories. If that is all, I would have preferred to remain asleep."
"Well you should be glad we got you up," said Nic.
Stanyard pushed Nic aside to assert his dominance. "Nic found a communications entry saying that a new industry has begun on Rott, the prison island from whence Nic came here."
"A delightful place, let me assure you. The hairstylist culture is a little crude, but otherwise..." With a look Stanyard silenced the doctor.
"They've started making what they call 'Red Rain,' there."
A gasp rippled through everyone in the basement who hadn't heard it already. The silence afterward was tangible.
Ephesus looked over at Nic, the hostility in his gaze latent, "And how, Doctor, is that possible?"
"I finished it the night before the escape. You almost had it, old man," Smyrna would have none of it.
"It's Thomas Smyrna."
Ephesus punctuated, "And I'll knock your block off before I hear you call him anything else again, especially as I am fairly mindful to do it right now anyway. You mean you gave them the weapon and then proceeded to run away?"
"I downloaded the chemistry onto our microchip."
"My. Microchip. My microchip. I hadn't even thought of it since we left there."
"The microchip that was in our possession. But apparently a ghost version remained on the cloud that they decoded."
Ephesus rolled his eyes, "Philli could decode a ghost file without too much trouble. It's not that difficult."
The doubtfulness of the statement was obvious on Philadelphia's face. Ephesus launched, "So what you are saying is, that despite all your intelligence with chemicals and radioactive isotopes, you made the dumbest error none to hacking? I'd say that between your computer ineptitude and utter lack of people skills, you have your life fairly fouled up, and a few others beside!"
"Don't forget my lack of religion. That has to be on the list somewhere."
Ephesus was furious, and stood up about ready to finish off his threat. Cea grabbed his arm and pulled him back down.
Stanyard drew both guns. "You obviously don't realize how important time is. Nic connected that computer to the internet. They will know I am still here. They'll pounce on us at any moment. We have to scatter."
My daddy stood up to that. "We will do know such thing. We're done being pulled around by the schemes of all you people involved in the world's affairs. We are getting out, together. We'll go back to the camp before we'll separate again."
I hoped my face showed that I was resolved with him. Ephesus' face did.
I watched the other half of the room react. It was three versus three.
Nic chuckled, "You know you can't go back? You're all criminals now. Even Miss Philadelphia." I felt blood drain out of my face as I caught on. "You are all thieves and murderers, in the truest sense of the word. Philadelphia shot a man in the stomach and assisted in the murder of several others. Several of you have illegal cell phones. You can't just go back to camp."
Stanyard countered, "No they can't, but they can go to safe-houses. We can keep them safe."
Nic stood up, "Except for one large problem. Two words. Red Rain."
I didn't get it. "Why is that a problem? The United has had weapons of mass destruction for a long time. They won't turn them on us."
Everyone but me bit their lower lip. They all looked around, trying to see who else was in the know. Apparently I was the only one who didn't get it.
My daddy leaned down to me, "Philadelphia, dear, it's not quite like that. There's a civil war brewing. Once one side has Red Rain, it will start. And we're all bound to be caught in the cross fire."
A civil war? in the United? Wasn't that an oxymoron?
Nic finished off for me, "See, pretty girl, on one side is the tyrants who just want control of everything. On the other side are some idealists who want freedom for everyone. They both lobbied me for Red Rain, and in fact, I signed with both. Once they have it, they'll use it to wipe out their resistance."
I still didn't see how us little Christians needed to be involved, but I was sure I didn't like Nic's new nickname for me. "But we're not on a side. We just follow Christ and obey."
Cea got me this time, "But you see, Phil, there's just the thing. We might be able to survive a war. It might even help us. But millions will die. Millions, Phil."
Was everyone against me? "But it's not our job to fix all the wars. It's not our fault. We aren't going to fire the rockets.
Ephesus knelt next to me, "Philli, remember the last time someone had Red Rain?"
Boy did I ever.
"Someone else had Red Rain, and he was going to hurt people. Lot's of innocent people. And even if he didn't use it, he was going to threaten them all with it and other weapons. It's the same thing again except someone else has it."
I looked over at the someone. This was his fault. All of it.
"So you see," the someone said, "You've all got your feet stuck in this one. Mister Thomas Smyrna over there did most of the work; Ephesus did some; I did the rest; Stanyard hid me; Cea supported us all and shot a few people; we lit a laboratory on fire, blew up a few elevators, and now they have my weapon."
"So what are we going to do about it?" I exploded.
Stanyard looked at his guns. Ephesus smiled, and Nic did the same, in his old creepy smile of mastery.
Oh. So that was what we were going to do. I didn't like it.
Friday, September 14, 2012
Crook Q Part 35
A new factory down at the lowest depths of Rott. A weapons factory, under direction of Commander Ambrose. "So, he got a position of leadership again. He must be tickled pink."
A plant manufacturing a weapon to end all resistance.
But how could this be?
A new chemical weapon, branded "Red Rain," was in production:
In the last year, United peace-keeping forces made a daring raid into space, sacking a nest of terrorism disguised by the front of a research facility. There they had developed the rudiments of a technology designed to wipe out all life on earth. Weapons technology belongs only in the hands of the benevolent government of this United planet.
United scientists have perfected the state of this chemical weapon, capable of burning through any pH reactive substance, requiring only the presence of water. Propelled by radioactive particles, the weapon will also destroy any life hiding behind non-reactive defenses. Silver has proven non-reactive enough to act as a shield so long as water is not available to start the reaction. Thus, the fluid is pumped in sealed silver-lined pipes with a lead lining in case of trace amounts of water were to infect the system.
Because of the dangerous nature of this new weapon, which will be useful in pacifying rebellious regions, stubborn populations, and the few hold outs of totalitarianism in the far reaches of the earth, and will prevent any stellar warfare, again, because of the danger of this new weapon, first tests and manufacturing are beginning in secured scientific labs at the bottom of a secure vault.
So is that why Christians hated lying and deceit? But how had they got it?
Then it slapped Nic in the face. The same way he read this report. When he had copied the files to his chip, the ghost file stayed on the cloud. And, even though Nic was a smart one, he had not deleted it.
They had his weapon. It was no good if two sides had it. Here he had passed through caverns of prison, through space, out of a prison-science-hospital, and they had it.
Well, they had to get it back. He would get it back. Somehow.
"Now close the computer, then put your hands on the top of your head, but don't even think about turning around."
Nic stiffened. The last time someone had a gun, he had rigged the door. This, time, no luck.
"You know the computer was only asleep? I was working on it until about forty-five seconds before you came up. Now, you've shown your skill on the computers. And it's not half bad. Just tell me what you were up to."
"And... if I won't?"
"Well, fortunately, we are a floor down. The shot won't carry far."
"You couldn't shoot me. You'd never make it to heaven that way."
"Oh I never said it would be lethal. I think I can safely leave you bleeding somewhere for the United to find. You might even be able to throw them off our trail."
"And why would I help someone like you?"
"Well, if maybe, we had Cea with us. Wouldn't want to send people our way then, would you?"
"Oh you are a devil."
"Innocent as pigeons," Augustine hissed in Nic's ear, "Sly as serpents." Then Stanyard made a quick move and drew Nic's gun out of this pocket.
"Now. What were you up to, again?"
A plant manufacturing a weapon to end all resistance.
But how could this be?
A new chemical weapon, branded "Red Rain," was in production:
In the last year, United peace-keeping forces made a daring raid into space, sacking a nest of terrorism disguised by the front of a research facility. There they had developed the rudiments of a technology designed to wipe out all life on earth. Weapons technology belongs only in the hands of the benevolent government of this United planet.
United scientists have perfected the state of this chemical weapon, capable of burning through any pH reactive substance, requiring only the presence of water. Propelled by radioactive particles, the weapon will also destroy any life hiding behind non-reactive defenses. Silver has proven non-reactive enough to act as a shield so long as water is not available to start the reaction. Thus, the fluid is pumped in sealed silver-lined pipes with a lead lining in case of trace amounts of water were to infect the system.
Because of the dangerous nature of this new weapon, which will be useful in pacifying rebellious regions, stubborn populations, and the few hold outs of totalitarianism in the far reaches of the earth, and will prevent any stellar warfare, again, because of the danger of this new weapon, first tests and manufacturing are beginning in secured scientific labs at the bottom of a secure vault.
So is that why Christians hated lying and deceit? But how had they got it?
Then it slapped Nic in the face. The same way he read this report. When he had copied the files to his chip, the ghost file stayed on the cloud. And, even though Nic was a smart one, he had not deleted it.
They had his weapon. It was no good if two sides had it. Here he had passed through caverns of prison, through space, out of a prison-science-hospital, and they had it.
Well, they had to get it back. He would get it back. Somehow.
"Now close the computer, then put your hands on the top of your head, but don't even think about turning around."
Nic stiffened. The last time someone had a gun, he had rigged the door. This, time, no luck.
"You know the computer was only asleep? I was working on it until about forty-five seconds before you came up. Now, you've shown your skill on the computers. And it's not half bad. Just tell me what you were up to."
"And... if I won't?"
"Well, fortunately, we are a floor down. The shot won't carry far."
"You couldn't shoot me. You'd never make it to heaven that way."
"Oh I never said it would be lethal. I think I can safely leave you bleeding somewhere for the United to find. You might even be able to throw them off our trail."
"And why would I help someone like you?"
"Well, if maybe, we had Cea with us. Wouldn't want to send people our way then, would you?"
"Oh you are a devil."
"Innocent as pigeons," Augustine hissed in Nic's ear, "Sly as serpents." Then Stanyard made a quick move and drew Nic's gun out of this pocket.
"Now. What were you up to, again?"
Crook Q Part 34
Augustine concluded the conference, "I will go back upstairs and see what I can do. I will try to make the United think we left already, in a rush. They will, hopefully, wait for us to come back before coming in, expecting us to try to clean up the exit. You all have to lay low. And the lights have to go off, too.
A few minutes later we were all in darkness again.
For many hours the Christians sat in the dark and conversed. They talked about trials and sufferings, and how much better of people they would be when it was all over, by the grace of God. Seemed like some awfully complicated business for just meaning that they got better at living after getting experience. With how much faith-building they talked about Nic was beginning to imagine a tower that could outdo even that of Babel. Brick, tar, and faith.
Eventually they grew tired of quoting ancient works of religious literature and retired to sleep. Nic had dozed occasionally during the day, he couldn't help sleeping when surrounded by such un-stimulating conversation. And so he had barely moved out of his chair, except for a few moments to stretch, which were dangerous, because in the pure dark one could trip over something at any moment.
And so they all went to sleep. Nic was almost there, too, physically, but mentally he was outpacing the download speed of the fastest computers he had ever worked on.
So the United was on there trail. And not just on the trail, they were after Nic, and after Cea. Nic still had the microchip. Ephesus had never demanded it back yet. He might have almost forgotten about it, since Cea had the same virus on her chip.
It had been too long since Nic used a computer. Too long since he had information. His moves were being made by some Christian zealots with nothing but the kingdom of God in mind. Nic had other plans, and he did not trust the Christians to work in his best interest. He had to know what was going on. He had to know what kinds of evidence, what lines of clues, the United was pursuing. He specialized in knowing the project better than it knew itself. He had to out-know the United. And sitting in the basement wouldn't accomplish that. He felt like he was in a bad version of Plato's cave.
He managed to traverse the floor without tripping. He couldn't afford noise. There was the lowest rung. Up he went, one at a time, barely breathing. There was the top. He popped the latch and was out. Nic crawled across the floor, counting his little crawls. He bumped his head against a box and barely restrained from profanity. He turned ninety degrees and kept going. He reached the stereo, and instantly popped out the cassette. In case he was caught, he could plea bargain his evidence, maybe.
Now where was the door to the main shop.
But then he didn't need it. A computer was sitting next to him on a box. Augustine must have left it there when he got interrupted with something. Perfect.
Passwords didn't stop Nic for long. This would be a cinch.
Except that there was no password. The computer was left logged-in.
Nic prowled around until he found an internet browser. It was an ancient thing, something about what had once been counted as a high number and a shiny metal, except the number was spelled with a "-gle" instead of a "-gol." Silly 21st century advertising.
Connecting took an eternity. Apparently the device had never been connected to the United internet before. Nic would have to find a way to wipe this things record when he was done... the virus would do. Besides, he needed to test it, for his own confidence's sake.
In under ten minutes Nic was cruising his way through United government communication files. He did a quick search for Rachel. Still no records.
Then he searched for himself. And he was amazed.
He had escaped from Rott, apparently on nothing more than a scrap of wood. His body was never found at sea. He was legally dead.
Well that was an interesting revelation, to say the least.
And Cea, was she dead, too?
No, she was very much alive. Apparently she had been hired to work on a top secret mission on Mars, a colony project, from which colonists were not allowed to return. Nic knew from personal experience that there were no such projects. Some governmnet-employed liar had creative ways of eliminating people that shouldn't be on the papers.
Maybe that's where Rachel was, too.
For a quick moment of fun, Nic looked up John and Dowe. Not at all to his surprise, he found an entry covering both. There escapades were remarkable. Apparently a whole warehouse of print Bibles had emptied itself in the space of three hours, and they were found with one-tenth of the booty twelve hours later. And there was a missing jump-jet. That never turned up again. And millions of dollars of records were burnt. They escaped, made mischief, were caught, caught while escaping, escaped, made mischief, lit something else on fire, and apparently turned one thing into rubber even on the official entries. Then they went to Rott. And then there was an interesting entry. "Hired as valve operators." The date was for two days ago.
There was something interesting. New industry on Rott. But of no consequence.
The Smyrnas... how did they show up?
Ephesus was still dead in an explosion. It must have been to embarrassing to ever correct that. Thomas Smyrna worked as a lab-tech in a factory. His was accurate.
How about that miscreant female creature that was his offspring?
"Philadelphia Smyrna. Age: 17. Unaccepted minor. Uncovered one Unaccepted plot of global terrorism." She was classified as a moderate. Stubborn about her religion, but not a trouble-maker.
Well, obviously the United saw things in a very different light than their greatest Martian governor ever.
And what about her mother? Where did she get the other half of her trouble-making side?
Her mother was dead. She had been killed when being brought into questioning. There was a newspaper link to the story. Nic followed it.
"Unaccepted Scientist Kills His Wife."
Well, that escalated quickly.
Nic read on. Apparrently there was a purge of the ranks in Street 17 Camp at some point. The best Christians were brought in for questioning. The state was refilling its archives and reassessing the religion problem. Really just paper-work shuffling. That's when Dr. Thomas Smyrna's wife was called up.
But he wouldn't let her go.
There had been some sort of scuffle at his home. He had resisted letting her go. She would have went, according to the media, but he dragged her inside and tried to lock the door. As Commander Ambrose moved in to get her, force was required. Setting his gun to a stunning level, Ambrose had fired upon Dr. Smyrna. Somehow he missed, and the stun shot caught his wife in the head, the only spot a stun-shot would be lethal.
There was a story to tell. Finally, Nic new his chief nemesis better than she knew herself.
So he went to check on the new Rott industry. That was more tightly classified, but then he found a major de-briefing that he stole the transitory version of. When a file transfers, the cloud of transfer holds, temporarily, a ghost copy of the document. Only smart people remembered to protect those or delete them. So Nic read away.
A new factory down at the lowest depths of Rott. A weapons factory, under direction of Commander Ambrose. "So, he got a position of leadership again. He must be tickled pink."
A plant manufacturing a weapon to end all resistance.
But how could this be?
A few minutes later we were all in darkness again.
For many hours the Christians sat in the dark and conversed. They talked about trials and sufferings, and how much better of people they would be when it was all over, by the grace of God. Seemed like some awfully complicated business for just meaning that they got better at living after getting experience. With how much faith-building they talked about Nic was beginning to imagine a tower that could outdo even that of Babel. Brick, tar, and faith.
Eventually they grew tired of quoting ancient works of religious literature and retired to sleep. Nic had dozed occasionally during the day, he couldn't help sleeping when surrounded by such un-stimulating conversation. And so he had barely moved out of his chair, except for a few moments to stretch, which were dangerous, because in the pure dark one could trip over something at any moment.
And so they all went to sleep. Nic was almost there, too, physically, but mentally he was outpacing the download speed of the fastest computers he had ever worked on.
So the United was on there trail. And not just on the trail, they were after Nic, and after Cea. Nic still had the microchip. Ephesus had never demanded it back yet. He might have almost forgotten about it, since Cea had the same virus on her chip.
It had been too long since Nic used a computer. Too long since he had information. His moves were being made by some Christian zealots with nothing but the kingdom of God in mind. Nic had other plans, and he did not trust the Christians to work in his best interest. He had to know what was going on. He had to know what kinds of evidence, what lines of clues, the United was pursuing. He specialized in knowing the project better than it knew itself. He had to out-know the United. And sitting in the basement wouldn't accomplish that. He felt like he was in a bad version of Plato's cave.
He managed to traverse the floor without tripping. He couldn't afford noise. There was the lowest rung. Up he went, one at a time, barely breathing. There was the top. He popped the latch and was out. Nic crawled across the floor, counting his little crawls. He bumped his head against a box and barely restrained from profanity. He turned ninety degrees and kept going. He reached the stereo, and instantly popped out the cassette. In case he was caught, he could plea bargain his evidence, maybe.
Now where was the door to the main shop.
But then he didn't need it. A computer was sitting next to him on a box. Augustine must have left it there when he got interrupted with something. Perfect.
Passwords didn't stop Nic for long. This would be a cinch.
Except that there was no password. The computer was left logged-in.
Nic prowled around until he found an internet browser. It was an ancient thing, something about what had once been counted as a high number and a shiny metal, except the number was spelled with a "-gle" instead of a "-gol." Silly 21st century advertising.
Connecting took an eternity. Apparently the device had never been connected to the United internet before. Nic would have to find a way to wipe this things record when he was done... the virus would do. Besides, he needed to test it, for his own confidence's sake.
In under ten minutes Nic was cruising his way through United government communication files. He did a quick search for Rachel. Still no records.
Then he searched for himself. And he was amazed.
He had escaped from Rott, apparently on nothing more than a scrap of wood. His body was never found at sea. He was legally dead.
Well that was an interesting revelation, to say the least.
And Cea, was she dead, too?
No, she was very much alive. Apparently she had been hired to work on a top secret mission on Mars, a colony project, from which colonists were not allowed to return. Nic knew from personal experience that there were no such projects. Some governmnet-employed liar had creative ways of eliminating people that shouldn't be on the papers.
Maybe that's where Rachel was, too.
For a quick moment of fun, Nic looked up John and Dowe. Not at all to his surprise, he found an entry covering both. There escapades were remarkable. Apparently a whole warehouse of print Bibles had emptied itself in the space of three hours, and they were found with one-tenth of the booty twelve hours later. And there was a missing jump-jet. That never turned up again. And millions of dollars of records were burnt. They escaped, made mischief, were caught, caught while escaping, escaped, made mischief, lit something else on fire, and apparently turned one thing into rubber even on the official entries. Then they went to Rott. And then there was an interesting entry. "Hired as valve operators." The date was for two days ago.
There was something interesting. New industry on Rott. But of no consequence.
The Smyrnas... how did they show up?
Ephesus was still dead in an explosion. It must have been to embarrassing to ever correct that. Thomas Smyrna worked as a lab-tech in a factory. His was accurate.
How about that miscreant female creature that was his offspring?
"Philadelphia Smyrna. Age: 17. Unaccepted minor. Uncovered one Unaccepted plot of global terrorism." She was classified as a moderate. Stubborn about her religion, but not a trouble-maker.
Well, obviously the United saw things in a very different light than their greatest Martian governor ever.
And what about her mother? Where did she get the other half of her trouble-making side?
Her mother was dead. She had been killed when being brought into questioning. There was a newspaper link to the story. Nic followed it.
"Unaccepted Scientist Kills His Wife."
Well, that escalated quickly.
Nic read on. Apparrently there was a purge of the ranks in Street 17 Camp at some point. The best Christians were brought in for questioning. The state was refilling its archives and reassessing the religion problem. Really just paper-work shuffling. That's when Dr. Thomas Smyrna's wife was called up.
But he wouldn't let her go.
There had been some sort of scuffle at his home. He had resisted letting her go. She would have went, according to the media, but he dragged her inside and tried to lock the door. As Commander Ambrose moved in to get her, force was required. Setting his gun to a stunning level, Ambrose had fired upon Dr. Smyrna. Somehow he missed, and the stun shot caught his wife in the head, the only spot a stun-shot would be lethal.
There was a story to tell. Finally, Nic new his chief nemesis better than she knew herself.
So he went to check on the new Rott industry. That was more tightly classified, but then he found a major de-briefing that he stole the transitory version of. When a file transfers, the cloud of transfer holds, temporarily, a ghost copy of the document. Only smart people remembered to protect those or delete them. So Nic read away.
A new factory down at the lowest depths of Rott. A weapons factory, under direction of Commander Ambrose. "So, he got a position of leadership again. He must be tickled pink."
A plant manufacturing a weapon to end all resistance.
But how could this be?
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Crook Q Part 53
"We both find satisfaction. Only one of us finds truth. Now tell me, who is more likely to have truth, the movie directors or the Truth Himself?"
"So long as you reserve the right to define your deity as the embodiment of truth, you will never lose this argument."Smyrna smiled, "And if we define Him as anything else, He isn't God anymore, and you win this argument."
Nic returned to studying the successful methods of his scientific colleague at fire inducement. Apparently the reduced surface area of the wound up log of paper gave it more sustainability. In the case of natural disaster, natural selection might favor Christians after all.
They both sat there looking at the fire for a moment longer, then Smyrna retreated to a corner of the room, behind a pile of junk. Nic listened to the silence for a moment, then returned to the infinitesimally small hum and hiss of the embers. The old man was praying, undoubtedly.
The ex-governor considered his options among plans. He had the weapon, both of them, the virus and the Red Rain. The best part was that no one knew it, which gave him more time. Still, Nic could barely make sense of his own actions. He had never really decided on what his true course was. He had played off both sides when it came to contracting to make Red Rain happen. He had then abandoned one of them in randomly escaping, but here he was unwilling to give over his weapon to the others. He did not like the anarchists idealism, or their methods of procuring it, nor did he like the fascists and their totalitarian arrogance. In the words of a fantastic creature from a centuries old epic, he was on no one's side, because no one was on his side.
Or maybe in his case it was the opposite. No one would take the Dr. Nic who could defeat them at anything except maybe running a marathon. No one would take the man who had been evicted to Mars and there been one step from being history's greatest terrorist. The school valedictorian with a criminal record. And now, apparently, he was nothing more than a loose end to a group of religious vagabonds that lived like worms. Only a few people had ever really tolerated his contradictions, and only two had loved him despite his volatile tendencies. Cea had stuck with him always, an essential support. They had taken the other one.
No matter the craze of his circumstances, Nic remained calm for one reason. He knew he had the trump card. He was in control here. If captured, all he had to do was plea bargain his way to freedom by offering Red Rain in return for whatever he wanted.
What he most wanted, though, was to be back on the red planet. Back away from all these frivolous people who seemed to all be either caught up in worshiping a God or persecuting those that did.
There was a stirring over on the female side of the room. Nic turned, but his eyes had adjusted to the firelight, and looking into the darkness he could see nothing. He listened, trying to guess who it was. A sudden sniff that had stifled a gasp told him. It was that Christian girl named after one of the oldest cities in North America.
Nic felt the eye-contact at the same time. He turned back to the fire, but it hardly lessened the awkwardness. Nic made a joke of the situation, "Don't worry, it isn't Hell. I know that it is dark, and there is a fire, and I am here, but that doesn't make it Hell. If I remember right, Hell has something about dragons and sulfur and stuff."
Philadelphia just stood in the semi-dark in the same clothes she had worn since she escaped from her own prison. That wasn't the same Nic she had dealt with before.
(to be continued after I go eat dinner)
"So long as you reserve the right to define your deity as the embodiment of truth, you will never lose this argument."Smyrna smiled, "And if we define Him as anything else, He isn't God anymore, and you win this argument."
Nic returned to studying the successful methods of his scientific colleague at fire inducement. Apparently the reduced surface area of the wound up log of paper gave it more sustainability. In the case of natural disaster, natural selection might favor Christians after all.
They both sat there looking at the fire for a moment longer, then Smyrna retreated to a corner of the room, behind a pile of junk. Nic listened to the silence for a moment, then returned to the infinitesimally small hum and hiss of the embers. The old man was praying, undoubtedly.
The ex-governor considered his options among plans. He had the weapon, both of them, the virus and the Red Rain. The best part was that no one knew it, which gave him more time. Still, Nic could barely make sense of his own actions. He had never really decided on what his true course was. He had played off both sides when it came to contracting to make Red Rain happen. He had then abandoned one of them in randomly escaping, but here he was unwilling to give over his weapon to the others. He did not like the anarchists idealism, or their methods of procuring it, nor did he like the fascists and their totalitarian arrogance. In the words of a fantastic creature from a centuries old epic, he was on no one's side, because no one was on his side.
Or maybe in his case it was the opposite. No one would take the Dr. Nic who could defeat them at anything except maybe running a marathon. No one would take the man who had been evicted to Mars and there been one step from being history's greatest terrorist. The school valedictorian with a criminal record. And now, apparently, he was nothing more than a loose end to a group of religious vagabonds that lived like worms. Only a few people had ever really tolerated his contradictions, and only two had loved him despite his volatile tendencies. Cea had stuck with him always, an essential support. They had taken the other one.
No matter the craze of his circumstances, Nic remained calm for one reason. He knew he had the trump card. He was in control here. If captured, all he had to do was plea bargain his way to freedom by offering Red Rain in return for whatever he wanted.
What he most wanted, though, was to be back on the red planet. Back away from all these frivolous people who seemed to all be either caught up in worshiping a God or persecuting those that did.
There was a stirring over on the female side of the room. Nic turned, but his eyes had adjusted to the firelight, and looking into the darkness he could see nothing. He listened, trying to guess who it was. A sudden sniff that had stifled a gasp told him. It was that Christian girl named after one of the oldest cities in North America.
Nic felt the eye-contact at the same time. He turned back to the fire, but it hardly lessened the awkwardness. Nic made a joke of the situation, "Don't worry, it isn't Hell. I know that it is dark, and there is a fire, and I am here, but that doesn't make it Hell. If I remember right, Hell has something about dragons and sulfur and stuff."
Philadelphia just stood in the semi-dark in the same clothes she had worn since she escaped from her own prison. That wasn't the same Nic she had dealt with before.
(to be continued after I go eat dinner)
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Philli Part 29 & Crook Q 51B
I really don't know what to do about this scene. I have to pick which perspective to write it in... though maybe I will eventually do both. Philli has been resting for quite a time, so to add to the drama effect I have decided to take a try at writing this pivotal scene from Phil's perspective.
Nic took the boxes off from on top of the box, and, sure enough there was lift-able door on top of the crate. Opening it Nic just discerned the glint of the top wrung of a ladder. He got in and started climbing down, Smyrna just above his head with Ephesus there to replace the door. The boxes were empty, so Ephesus could just put them on the door and then carefully lower it in place and there would be no sign of their arrival. As he placed the door down he saw the lights of the stereo go off. All was dark and they climbed down the ladder.
--
I sat in the basement by the light of burning trash. Stanyard had come down and explained the lights needed to go off. The United might notice excess electricity being expended by their building. He had given me some matches and told me that was what the burn pile was for. There were vents in the ceiling, so it would be fine to burn if the fire was right under them
I didn't know if it was day or night outside by this point. I had decided it was day, so I had lit a fire since I couldn't stand a dawnless day. Cea still thought it was night; she was sleeping.
I couldn't bring myself to burn any of those books, even if I hadn't ever heard of them before. I was sure the were precious somehow. I sat there reading one of the shorter ones, The Song of the Troll, to the light of the burning R.I.U.N. manual. I had started with the blasphemous Ten Commandments. Then I had went back to the front.
The story was a strange one. It was about a strange man who had survived a terrible war. And now all he cared about was a little girl he met. He was so powerful and so smart in his own way, but all he cared about was that silly little girl. Then I heard his shoes clapping on the ladder rungs.
It wasn't Stanyard's walk. It wasn't Cea going up, even though I knew we weren't allowed to.
It was my daddy.
I heard his shoes hit the ground, and more coming down behind him. Ephesus!
I bounded over in the darkness, almost tripping over Cea, who was just poking her head up, and hugged him as the first man got to the ground.
Then I realized it wasn't my daddy. And it wasn't Ephesus with his lump over-stuffed coat. It was Daddy's shirt, but not him.
I paled. And then I started walking backwards. Cea had to catch me.
It was him.
"Running into me again, Philadelphia Smyrna? I thought you had said you'd be more careful."
I sat shaking on the floor, Cea holding my shoulders.
Silence reigned as the second man got to the bottom of the ladder. Cea let go of me and hugged her brother. I could hear her choked-back sobs. Her brother was out of prison. He was alive, and apparently well. Daddy came and scooped me up and kissed me lightly on the cheek. He was back, and he was alive, too.
And then Ephesus came down, and I was overwhelmed enough to forget who else was in the room.
My family had shared tough times before. When we had been told that Ephesus was dead. When Mira and Stanyard had run off. When we thought Daddy was being taken away. And every time we had coped with it together, holding each other close. We never held each other closer than that time in all the times I can remember.
I wept and I thanked God, all mixing with snippets of stories and prayers my daddy and brother were making. I didn't care we were in a smoky dark basement twenty feet below the ground. I wouldn't have cared if we were back on Mars in a basement. I wouldn't care if we were the last house left in the shrinking Street 17 containment camp. As long as we were there and we were together, I would learn to be content in all things. Back together and safe was all that mattered.
--
Nic led the descent down into the basement. He heard the crackle of flames, maybe a page turning. Surely this was the containment cell, then. One prison for the other for the other. It was ridiculous. Hopefully it was a big room or more than one so that he could have some privacy from the Christians that had been stalking him since he arrived in floor negative nine of Rott.
His foot missed a rung. That must be the bottom. Nic hopped off the ladder and looked into the room. There was small fire, casting very little light. There looked to be the outline of someone laying on the floor there, and...
And she had him around the waist. But she was too short and too smooth haired to be Cea.
Nic was not one to demonstrate his frustration violently unless his very freedom was being threatened. Since it was merely personal space violation, he as able to restrain himself to just a huff through the nose.
Then she realized her mistake. "Running into me again, Philadelphia Smyrna? I thought you had said you'd be more careful."
Nic would have gone on, in a sweet moment of irony and emotional vengeance, but then the outline stood up. Even in the dim light he could see those blonde curls that almost matched his in color. And even through the dark he could see that she had been through more than him. And even in the dark Nic could tell that all she was thinking about was him.
They grabbed onto each other simultaneously. Who cared if they were in the basement of some Christian's underground operation? They had found each other, and now the could go back to working together. Cea had been there as support for ever major event in Nic's life. Now the could start over again. Once they disappeared into the mega-country called the United they could be free again. Or go off to Mars. Nic didn't care. He held his precious sister close.
As the held each other more tightly Nic felt the microchip in his pocket pressing into his chest. And he remembered the other plan.
Nic took the boxes off from on top of the box, and, sure enough there was lift-able door on top of the crate. Opening it Nic just discerned the glint of the top wrung of a ladder. He got in and started climbing down, Smyrna just above his head with Ephesus there to replace the door. The boxes were empty, so Ephesus could just put them on the door and then carefully lower it in place and there would be no sign of their arrival. As he placed the door down he saw the lights of the stereo go off. All was dark and they climbed down the ladder.
--
I sat in the basement by the light of burning trash. Stanyard had come down and explained the lights needed to go off. The United might notice excess electricity being expended by their building. He had given me some matches and told me that was what the burn pile was for. There were vents in the ceiling, so it would be fine to burn if the fire was right under them
I didn't know if it was day or night outside by this point. I had decided it was day, so I had lit a fire since I couldn't stand a dawnless day. Cea still thought it was night; she was sleeping.
I couldn't bring myself to burn any of those books, even if I hadn't ever heard of them before. I was sure the were precious somehow. I sat there reading one of the shorter ones, The Song of the Troll, to the light of the burning R.I.U.N. manual. I had started with the blasphemous Ten Commandments. Then I had went back to the front.
The story was a strange one. It was about a strange man who had survived a terrible war. And now all he cared about was a little girl he met. He was so powerful and so smart in his own way, but all he cared about was that silly little girl. Then I heard his shoes clapping on the ladder rungs.
It wasn't Stanyard's walk. It wasn't Cea going up, even though I knew we weren't allowed to.
It was my daddy.
I heard his shoes hit the ground, and more coming down behind him. Ephesus!
I bounded over in the darkness, almost tripping over Cea, who was just poking her head up, and hugged him as the first man got to the ground.
Then I realized it wasn't my daddy. And it wasn't Ephesus with his lump over-stuffed coat. It was Daddy's shirt, but not him.
I paled. And then I started walking backwards. Cea had to catch me.
It was him.
"Running into me again, Philadelphia Smyrna? I thought you had said you'd be more careful."
I sat shaking on the floor, Cea holding my shoulders.
Silence reigned as the second man got to the bottom of the ladder. Cea let go of me and hugged her brother. I could hear her choked-back sobs. Her brother was out of prison. He was alive, and apparently well. Daddy came and scooped me up and kissed me lightly on the cheek. He was back, and he was alive, too.
And then Ephesus came down, and I was overwhelmed enough to forget who else was in the room.
My family had shared tough times before. When we had been told that Ephesus was dead. When Mira and Stanyard had run off. When we thought Daddy was being taken away. And every time we had coped with it together, holding each other close. We never held each other closer than that time in all the times I can remember.
I wept and I thanked God, all mixing with snippets of stories and prayers my daddy and brother were making. I didn't care we were in a smoky dark basement twenty feet below the ground. I wouldn't have cared if we were back on Mars in a basement. I wouldn't care if we were the last house left in the shrinking Street 17 containment camp. As long as we were there and we were together, I would learn to be content in all things. Back together and safe was all that mattered.
--
Nic led the descent down into the basement. He heard the crackle of flames, maybe a page turning. Surely this was the containment cell, then. One prison for the other for the other. It was ridiculous. Hopefully it was a big room or more than one so that he could have some privacy from the Christians that had been stalking him since he arrived in floor negative nine of Rott.
His foot missed a rung. That must be the bottom. Nic hopped off the ladder and looked into the room. There was small fire, casting very little light. There looked to be the outline of someone laying on the floor there, and...
And she had him around the waist. But she was too short and too smooth haired to be Cea.
Nic was not one to demonstrate his frustration violently unless his very freedom was being threatened. Since it was merely personal space violation, he as able to restrain himself to just a huff through the nose.
Then she realized her mistake. "Running into me again, Philadelphia Smyrna? I thought you had said you'd be more careful."
Nic would have gone on, in a sweet moment of irony and emotional vengeance, but then the outline stood up. Even in the dim light he could see those blonde curls that almost matched his in color. And even through the dark he could see that she had been through more than him. And even in the dark Nic could tell that all she was thinking about was him.
They grabbed onto each other simultaneously. Who cared if they were in the basement of some Christian's underground operation? They had found each other, and now the could go back to working together. Cea had been there as support for ever major event in Nic's life. Now the could start over again. Once they disappeared into the mega-country called the United they could be free again. Or go off to Mars. Nic didn't care. He held his precious sister close.
As the held each other more tightly Nic felt the microchip in his pocket pressing into his chest. And he remembered the other plan.
Crook Q Part 51
Ephesus returned to the front of the Unity Peak building to find Nic engaged in an awkward looking conversation with someone. The stance of the other man betrayed that he was a man in authority. Nic usually didn't do well with those.
Ephesus strayed his path near to the two conversants. He didn't want to appear to be with Nic, since that would increase how noticeable the group was, but he was dying to hear what the two were saying. Just as he got within earshot he heard Nic say, "Well it was nice meeting you."
"My pleasure Doctor John Paul," the other man responded, shaking Nic's hand heartily, and walking away.
Ephesus waited for a few minutes before moving to the side of the street and saying, "I called a taxi. He should be here in a minute or two or three or four."
"Such imprecision."
"Driving through traffic is hardly a science."
"What is it then, an art?"
"No. It's the way normal people live, something you wouldn't know anything, Paul."
"Nor would I want to, Benny. Normal people live under the yoke of oppression for while and then they die and go to an earthy prison."
"Oh, and what will you do different?"
"I will live free," said Nic, clipping his sentence off cleanly.
"And then proceed to the earthy prison?"
"If I land there knowing I died a free man, I think I'll be glad."
"No, you won't. You'll be dead."
"I thought you Unaccepted believed in a life after death."
"We do. You just won't be glad."
"Whatever you say, young theologian. If you don't mind I will be considering our escape plan some more."
"It's simple. The van comes, we get in it. They will take care of us."
"Yes, they will take care of you. But they won't want me for long."
"Our underground will assist Unaccepted and Outsiders alike."
"Yes, but I won't live with them for long. I don't like having every idle phrase of mine cross-examined."
"Better to examine now and repent than to be examined later," Ephesus was interrupted.
"And be cast into hell."
Awkward silence reigned until van pulled up in five minute parking parking lot.
Ephesus went to the window, which rolled down. He said inside, "Can you take us to A and 113?"
The door was powered open from the inside and all three scientists piled inside. The door shut and they all let out a collective sigh of relief.
Ephesus said quickly to the driver, "I'm the only on in the inside. These are just passengers."
Smyrna for the first time realized how fully his son had become independent of him. Ephesus was running everything now. That thought gave him a bit to chew on for the ride. Nic tried to ignore his powerlessness in the situation. He inhaled and exhaled little gusts threw his nose to twitch around his mustache, which was by now a fair bit longer than he had liked. They had not given him a razor for his time in service, and the barber had never got at his mustache while in prison.
Prison made him think of John and Dowe. Those two poor fools. Those were the kind of people Nic would never let himself become.
The van did not go at all in the direction of Alpha and 113. It merely returned on its route towards the pizza place. Meanwhile, Ephesus watched out the windows at parts of the city he had never seen. He looked up at all the skyscrapers and around at the small buildings that were only a few floors tall. Glass walls glistened huge mural reflections of the grayish smoggy sky. The sky either had no clouds or only one massive one. It was noon, and since reflections were minimized thereby the city seemed only uglier than it needed to to the Unaccepted eye.
They all tried to keep their faces away from the windows, but even for the older gentlemen the city was fascinating. A mixture of beauty and filth so intertwined that you could never get your fill of the one and could never escape the other.
The van turned into a street alley that led to the garages behind the commercial district. This was it.
The van calmly turned toward an ordinary garage. It was a plain brick building, fairly old. The rear side of the massive sign that faced the street spelled "Pizza" backwards, with birds nests in every rafter and support. The garage doors opened and the van parked inside, next to an old ice-cream truck that had become a pizza delivery vehicle.
Nic hopped out of the vehicle. "Step inside?" he asked.
The driver looked at him, then at Ephesus. Ephesus said, "You heard my code word. Treat us with appropriate clearance. We don't really have a choice but to trust the other two."
The driver nodded. He walked inside the store and slammed the door behind him in Nic's face. The locks clicked instantly. Nic looked around. "We are to hide in a garage?"
Ephesus rolled his eyes. For irony's sake, at that exact moment there was a short hiss, and a door opened on the left edge of the wall that had the door into the shop. It led to some stairs.
The threesome quickly slipped in and the door shut behind them. They walked down the wooden stairs trying to be quiet, but with little success. They arrived in a dimly lit basement. All three stood still until an old stereo next to them turned on by itself. The light of its LEDs just barely revealed a cassette sitting on one of the million boxes in the stuffed basement. Ephesus took the tape and stuffed it in the stereo.
Pressing the yellowed plastic button that nearly cracked off as he did so, they heard the barely discernible and heavily garbled voice of a what might have been a man or a woman say, "Find the box marked, 'More Recent Stuff.' Three boxes over at ground level. Read shipping tag. Now put tape back."
Ephesus took the tape and put it back where it was. Nic whispered, "How are we supposed to find this box in the dark?"
"Reading, Nic. It's a useful skill."
They crawled all over the network of boxes, just barely able to read anything written there. Smyrna found the box in question, then did the conversion and found a wooden crate with a shipping tag. He called the other two over.
On the tag was scrawled, among all the bar codes and postal abbreviations, "De Profundis."
Ephesus and Smyrna were confused. Smyrna ventured, "'De' sounds like a Latin for "god.'"
Nic whispered, "It's an old Latin phrase. It means 'From the depths, out of despair.'" A reference to one of the Psalms, I think. Must be a hatch to another basement.
Nic took the boxes off from on top of the box, and, sure enough there was lift-able door on top of the crate. Opening it Nic just discerned the glint of the top wrung of a ladder. He got in and started climbing down, Smyrna just above his head with Ephesus there to replace the door. The boxes were empty, so Ephesus could just put them on the door and then carefully lower it in place and there would be no sign of their arrival. As he placed the door down he saw the lights of the stereo go off. All was dark and they climbed down the ladder.
Ephesus strayed his path near to the two conversants. He didn't want to appear to be with Nic, since that would increase how noticeable the group was, but he was dying to hear what the two were saying. Just as he got within earshot he heard Nic say, "Well it was nice meeting you."
"My pleasure Doctor John Paul," the other man responded, shaking Nic's hand heartily, and walking away.
Ephesus waited for a few minutes before moving to the side of the street and saying, "I called a taxi. He should be here in a minute or two or three or four."
"Such imprecision."
"Driving through traffic is hardly a science."
"What is it then, an art?"
"No. It's the way normal people live, something you wouldn't know anything, Paul."
"Nor would I want to, Benny. Normal people live under the yoke of oppression for while and then they die and go to an earthy prison."
"Oh, and what will you do different?"
"I will live free," said Nic, clipping his sentence off cleanly.
"And then proceed to the earthy prison?"
"If I land there knowing I died a free man, I think I'll be glad."
"No, you won't. You'll be dead."
"I thought you Unaccepted believed in a life after death."
"We do. You just won't be glad."
"Whatever you say, young theologian. If you don't mind I will be considering our escape plan some more."
"It's simple. The van comes, we get in it. They will take care of us."
"Yes, they will take care of you. But they won't want me for long."
"Our underground will assist Unaccepted and Outsiders alike."
"Yes, but I won't live with them for long. I don't like having every idle phrase of mine cross-examined."
"Better to examine now and repent than to be examined later," Ephesus was interrupted.
"And be cast into hell."
Awkward silence reigned until van pulled up in five minute parking parking lot.
Ephesus went to the window, which rolled down. He said inside, "Can you take us to A and 113?"
The door was powered open from the inside and all three scientists piled inside. The door shut and they all let out a collective sigh of relief.
Ephesus said quickly to the driver, "I'm the only on in the inside. These are just passengers."
Smyrna for the first time realized how fully his son had become independent of him. Ephesus was running everything now. That thought gave him a bit to chew on for the ride. Nic tried to ignore his powerlessness in the situation. He inhaled and exhaled little gusts threw his nose to twitch around his mustache, which was by now a fair bit longer than he had liked. They had not given him a razor for his time in service, and the barber had never got at his mustache while in prison.
Prison made him think of John and Dowe. Those two poor fools. Those were the kind of people Nic would never let himself become.
The van did not go at all in the direction of Alpha and 113. It merely returned on its route towards the pizza place. Meanwhile, Ephesus watched out the windows at parts of the city he had never seen. He looked up at all the skyscrapers and around at the small buildings that were only a few floors tall. Glass walls glistened huge mural reflections of the grayish smoggy sky. The sky either had no clouds or only one massive one. It was noon, and since reflections were minimized thereby the city seemed only uglier than it needed to to the Unaccepted eye.
They all tried to keep their faces away from the windows, but even for the older gentlemen the city was fascinating. A mixture of beauty and filth so intertwined that you could never get your fill of the one and could never escape the other.
The van turned into a street alley that led to the garages behind the commercial district. This was it.
The van calmly turned toward an ordinary garage. It was a plain brick building, fairly old. The rear side of the massive sign that faced the street spelled "Pizza" backwards, with birds nests in every rafter and support. The garage doors opened and the van parked inside, next to an old ice-cream truck that had become a pizza delivery vehicle.
Nic hopped out of the vehicle. "Step inside?" he asked.
The driver looked at him, then at Ephesus. Ephesus said, "You heard my code word. Treat us with appropriate clearance. We don't really have a choice but to trust the other two."
The driver nodded. He walked inside the store and slammed the door behind him in Nic's face. The locks clicked instantly. Nic looked around. "We are to hide in a garage?"
Ephesus rolled his eyes. For irony's sake, at that exact moment there was a short hiss, and a door opened on the left edge of the wall that had the door into the shop. It led to some stairs.
The threesome quickly slipped in and the door shut behind them. They walked down the wooden stairs trying to be quiet, but with little success. They arrived in a dimly lit basement. All three stood still until an old stereo next to them turned on by itself. The light of its LEDs just barely revealed a cassette sitting on one of the million boxes in the stuffed basement. Ephesus took the tape and stuffed it in the stereo.
Pressing the yellowed plastic button that nearly cracked off as he did so, they heard the barely discernible and heavily garbled voice of a what might have been a man or a woman say, "Find the box marked, 'More Recent Stuff.' Three boxes over at ground level. Read shipping tag. Now put tape back."
Ephesus took the tape and put it back where it was. Nic whispered, "How are we supposed to find this box in the dark?"
"Reading, Nic. It's a useful skill."
They crawled all over the network of boxes, just barely able to read anything written there. Smyrna found the box in question, then did the conversion and found a wooden crate with a shipping tag. He called the other two over.
On the tag was scrawled, among all the bar codes and postal abbreviations, "De Profundis."
Ephesus and Smyrna were confused. Smyrna ventured, "'De' sounds like a Latin for "god.'"
Nic whispered, "It's an old Latin phrase. It means 'From the depths, out of despair.'" A reference to one of the Psalms, I think. Must be a hatch to another basement.
Nic took the boxes off from on top of the box, and, sure enough there was lift-able door on top of the crate. Opening it Nic just discerned the glint of the top wrung of a ladder. He got in and started climbing down, Smyrna just above his head with Ephesus there to replace the door. The boxes were empty, so Ephesus could just put them on the door and then carefully lower it in place and there would be no sign of their arrival. As he placed the door down he saw the lights of the stereo go off. All was dark and they climbed down the ladder.
Sunday, August 19, 2012
Crook Q Part 50
"Well, Stephen, they know they can always drag us into the temple later. Once they have spotted you there is no losing you, so they may as well maximize dramatic affect."
Ephesus made one glance at his father and at Nic. "And you are?"
"Paul. John Paul Jones. I just go by the middle name."
"Somehow I would have expected Benedict Arnold."
"We can't all have the same name can we, Benny?"
Ephesus rolled his eyes, but accepted the new designation. "Anyhow, we might as well assume that they aren't trailing us yet. If they are, it's all lost any way. We just need to get where I can make a call."
The elder Smyrna was not so easily convinced, "Isn't it possible that we are being followed just to see where we go?"
"Very. But sitting still anywhere is of no use to us.Moving is the key. Let's go find somewhere the aren't likely to be scanning."
Smyrna and Nic left the building first, so as not to move as a threesome. The stood outside and waited at the side of the road, as though anticipating a taxi. Ephesus exited just a little later, and immediately began strolling down the street.
He hated having the pressure of finding a safe place to call on him, but also enjoyed the thrill of actually being in the adventure. He was walking by one of the improvised trash bins that had once been a flower pot when he spotted a lucky surprise. There it was.
The scanner itself. At one time the foliage had been enough to at least obscure the small box, but now that garbage had become the chief occupant of the concave surface, it was there for all to see. Ephesus sat on it. He'd have to hope that would be enough to weaken the ability to listen to his call. Besides, his number was on the old cell system. The signal from that system would have been pale at best without a man sitting on the box.
Only one more hurdle remained. The phone Ephesus owned was old. Very old. It would be clearly visible as such. Hopefully no one concerned or knowledgeable enough would walk by.
He tapped in a few numbers and held the phone against his ear, using his hand to hide it for the most part. He hunched over with his elbows on his knees to try to make the position appear natural.
"Hello, Standard Pizza."
"Hi. This is..." Ephesus struggled to recall his name under pressure, "this is Edison. I wonder if you deliver to Unit Peak?"
"It would be unusual, but we can do it, if you can pick the up the pizza street-side."
"Of course. I need three pizzas, preferably with peppers."
"You want those things kept warm?"
"No. A regular truck will do."
"Will that be cash or check?"
"Uh.... neither."
"Right."
Ephesus returned to the front of the Unity Peak building to find Nic engaged in an awkward looking conversation with someone. The stance of the other man betrayed that he was a man in authority. Nic usually didn't do well with those.
A really large update comes up next...
Ephesus made one glance at his father and at Nic. "And you are?"
"Paul. John Paul Jones. I just go by the middle name."
"Somehow I would have expected Benedict Arnold."
"We can't all have the same name can we, Benny?"
Ephesus rolled his eyes, but accepted the new designation. "Anyhow, we might as well assume that they aren't trailing us yet. If they are, it's all lost any way. We just need to get where I can make a call."
The elder Smyrna was not so easily convinced, "Isn't it possible that we are being followed just to see where we go?"
"Very. But sitting still anywhere is of no use to us.Moving is the key. Let's go find somewhere the aren't likely to be scanning."
Smyrna and Nic left the building first, so as not to move as a threesome. The stood outside and waited at the side of the road, as though anticipating a taxi. Ephesus exited just a little later, and immediately began strolling down the street.
He hated having the pressure of finding a safe place to call on him, but also enjoyed the thrill of actually being in the adventure. He was walking by one of the improvised trash bins that had once been a flower pot when he spotted a lucky surprise. There it was.
The scanner itself. At one time the foliage had been enough to at least obscure the small box, but now that garbage had become the chief occupant of the concave surface, it was there for all to see. Ephesus sat on it. He'd have to hope that would be enough to weaken the ability to listen to his call. Besides, his number was on the old cell system. The signal from that system would have been pale at best without a man sitting on the box.
Only one more hurdle remained. The phone Ephesus owned was old. Very old. It would be clearly visible as such. Hopefully no one concerned or knowledgeable enough would walk by.
He tapped in a few numbers and held the phone against his ear, using his hand to hide it for the most part. He hunched over with his elbows on his knees to try to make the position appear natural.
"Hello, Standard Pizza."
"Hi. This is..." Ephesus struggled to recall his name under pressure, "this is Edison. I wonder if you deliver to Unit Peak?"
"It would be unusual, but we can do it, if you can pick the up the pizza street-side."
"Of course. I need three pizzas, preferably with peppers."
"You want those things kept warm?"
"No. A regular truck will do."
"Will that be cash or check?"
"Uh.... neither."
"Right."
Ephesus returned to the front of the Unity Peak building to find Nic engaged in an awkward looking conversation with someone. The stance of the other man betrayed that he was a man in authority. Nic usually didn't do well with those.
A really large update comes up next...
Saturday, August 18, 2012
Crook Q Part 49
Nic looked up, surveyed his surroundings, and said, "We had best avoid using our names. I'll be Paul."
Smyrna smiled to himself, thinking, "I hope so." Then he said aloud, "And I'll be Stephen."
Nic looked blankly forward for a second then muttered, "I am not sure how to take the implications of that. Either you hope to die or you anticipate it happening anyway, neither of which is an encouraging sign." As Smyrna began to respond Nic cut him off, "Well we're here. The tallest tower in the province. The great Unity Peak."
Smyrna mumbled, "Seems rather lame to me."
"And to me, too. If I ever get to use Red Rain, I'll dump it on here first."
"And while you are at it why don't you just call me by my real name, if you are so comfortable dropping code words audibly."
Nic shrugged and walked toward the tower. Smyrna followed by example. They did their best not to glance at the men who were standing still or loafing nearby the doors. They weren't guards, just watchers. Almost more deadly than guards with machine guns were the idlers with pistols and ears. The United preferred to slowly constrict on a target than to jump them with big guns. It was less messy and made a quieter display of supremacy. Just enough for newspaper pictures and banners on the internet.
Smyrna pushed through the revolving door into the large lobby. Nic paused outside to read the inscription. "A Tower into Heaven. If any god should be offended by this tower, let it come and prove itself. We are the United, and cannot be divided."
Nic sneered and whispered, barely parting his lips, "If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other."
Nic did his best to slam the revolving door, ignoring the impossibility of the attempt. He passed into the lobby and spotted Smyrna waiting for him. As soon as Nic got near Smryna began walking away, and Nic followed him into the men's bathroom.
Ephesus was there, too. Nic never knew how those two had arranged to meet in a bathroom.
After they had each finished their business, or at least pretended to, they returned to the lobby and sat down together around a low table. All hunched over the table, Ephesus asked, "Do either of you know exactly what this building is for? What goes on in here?"
Nic sounded off, "When I was young this building was the honors high school. They sent us young geniuses there."
Ephesus raised his eyebrows, "Did they teach you humility?"
Nic returned, "They tried. When I learned that humility was only useful if you needed to disguise your ability, I learned to have it selectively."
Smyrna interjected, "Why do you ask, Ephesus?"
"I need to know if it is safe to make a call in," he whispered.
Nic shook his head, "Found that out the hard way, on a legal device even."
Ephesus continued, "Well we have pretty much no time until they have us nailed, if they haven't tracked us already. They may only be waiting to make the grab for when there are cameras to see it."
"Are they really so vain?"
"Well, Stephen, they know they can always drag us into the temple later. Once they have spotted you there is no losing you, so they may as well maximize dramatic affect."
Ephesus made one glance at his father and at Nic. "And you are?"
"Paul. John Paul Jones. I just go by the middle name."
"Somehow I would have expected Benedict Arnold."
"We can't all have the same name can we, Benny?"
Ephesus rolled his eyes, but accepted the new designation.
Smyrna smiled to himself, thinking, "I hope so." Then he said aloud, "And I'll be Stephen."
Nic looked blankly forward for a second then muttered, "I am not sure how to take the implications of that. Either you hope to die or you anticipate it happening anyway, neither of which is an encouraging sign." As Smyrna began to respond Nic cut him off, "Well we're here. The tallest tower in the province. The great Unity Peak."
Smyrna mumbled, "Seems rather lame to me."
"And to me, too. If I ever get to use Red Rain, I'll dump it on here first."
"And while you are at it why don't you just call me by my real name, if you are so comfortable dropping code words audibly."
Nic shrugged and walked toward the tower. Smyrna followed by example. They did their best not to glance at the men who were standing still or loafing nearby the doors. They weren't guards, just watchers. Almost more deadly than guards with machine guns were the idlers with pistols and ears. The United preferred to slowly constrict on a target than to jump them with big guns. It was less messy and made a quieter display of supremacy. Just enough for newspaper pictures and banners on the internet.
Smyrna pushed through the revolving door into the large lobby. Nic paused outside to read the inscription. "A Tower into Heaven. If any god should be offended by this tower, let it come and prove itself. We are the United, and cannot be divided."
Nic sneered and whispered, barely parting his lips, "If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other."
Nic did his best to slam the revolving door, ignoring the impossibility of the attempt. He passed into the lobby and spotted Smyrna waiting for him. As soon as Nic got near Smryna began walking away, and Nic followed him into the men's bathroom.
Ephesus was there, too. Nic never knew how those two had arranged to meet in a bathroom.
After they had each finished their business, or at least pretended to, they returned to the lobby and sat down together around a low table. All hunched over the table, Ephesus asked, "Do either of you know exactly what this building is for? What goes on in here?"
Nic sounded off, "When I was young this building was the honors high school. They sent us young geniuses there."
Ephesus raised his eyebrows, "Did they teach you humility?"
Nic returned, "They tried. When I learned that humility was only useful if you needed to disguise your ability, I learned to have it selectively."
Smyrna interjected, "Why do you ask, Ephesus?"
"I need to know if it is safe to make a call in," he whispered.
Nic shook his head, "Found that out the hard way, on a legal device even."
Ephesus continued, "Well we have pretty much no time until they have us nailed, if they haven't tracked us already. They may only be waiting to make the grab for when there are cameras to see it."
"Are they really so vain?"
"Well, Stephen, they know they can always drag us into the temple later. Once they have spotted you there is no losing you, so they may as well maximize dramatic affect."
Ephesus made one glance at his father and at Nic. "And you are?"
"Paul. John Paul Jones. I just go by the middle name."
"Somehow I would have expected Benedict Arnold."
"We can't all have the same name can we, Benny?"
Ephesus rolled his eyes, but accepted the new designation.
Crook Q Part 48
Nic smiled, "Who ever said I was honest, anyway?"
Smyrna continued walking in silence, until he broke it saying, "I don't think I have ever been referred to as dangerous before."
Nic passed Smyrna and whispered as he went, "Take it as a compliment. I've been dangerous all my life."
The two continued down the street with for a few paces, then Dr. Smryna started smiling.
"What's tickled your fancy now, old man?"
"It's Thomas."
"Thomas has tickled your fancy? This seems to be an odd revelation."
Smyrna just gave Nic a dull stare in response.
After a long moment Nic almost sheepishly continued in a low-toned, half-dead whisper, "What has tickled your fancy, Thomas?"
"You had said you have been dangerous all your life, and I began imagining what that would be like in your childhood."
Nic chuckled, "I would say that the title applies there, though in an entirely different way."
"I should hope a different way."
Nic laughed. "Yes, a different way. I was dangerous because I always said the wrong thing."
"Do explain."
"Socially, politically, culturally, any way I would always say the wrong thing. Outspoken in my curiosity, I guess. I always questioned what should not be questioned. It made some people hate me, and made me 'dangerous' to have around if you wanted to have a normal conversation."
"You mean you didn't know how to keep your mouth shut?"
"Oh no, I knew how. I just deliberately did not restrain myself." Nic laughed again, a higher pitched sort of snorty chuckle.
"Then I'd agree that you are dangerous. Anyone who can't restrain his tongue could set the whole world on fire."
"And that's my plan, too, if they won't let me speak."
Smyrna shot a curiously angry glance at Nic. "I don't know what deluded me into helping you, but now I am beginning to think that I am assisting a madman."
"Oh, I am a madman, Smyrna, a very mad man. I am mad for so many things. But I do not think that it is I that am crazy, so much as the whole rest of the world."
"I don't think everyone else is threatening to burn away all humanity if they don't get to have control."
"Oh but they are, Doctor, but they are. All in the little limited ways they are. They all throw their tantrums when they lose control. Most of them have only power enough to mess up a few other people's lives, maybe only spoil a day or two, but I," he raised the pitch of his voice, "But I... I am more powerful. If the world doesn't sober up and leave me at peace... they may all rest in peace."
"No exceptions?"
"None."
"I suppose you think a burned-out world would be a pleasant one? Would you really enjoy it if you successfully annihilated every voice that resisted you?"
Nic did not answer.
Sensing victory, Smyrna pressed his advantage, "I suppose you realize that you would do them all what they have done to you? You complain of being repressed, that you cannot speak as you would. So instead you would repress every one else in eternal silence, so that you can glory in your exalted cemetery paradise."
Nic kept his gaze on the sidewalk, carefully not stepping on any cracks. Eventually he muttered, "But it isn't fair."
"Life isn't fair, Doctor. A life spent in pursuit of fairness will fall dead on the track no closer to the end than when the gun fired, without divine intervention."
"I do not allow for the divine."
"And there will come a day when the divine will not allow for you. Then you will see what He thinks of all your denial of Him."
Nic remained in silence.
So Dr. Smyrna struck the final chord, "And what then, Nic? What then?"
Nic looked up, surveyed his surroundings, and said, "We had best avoid using our names. I'll be Paul."
Smyrna smiled to himself, thinking, "I hope so." Then he said aloud, "And I'll be Stephen."
More name games and intriguing dialogue in the next part....
Smyrna continued walking in silence, until he broke it saying, "I don't think I have ever been referred to as dangerous before."
Nic passed Smyrna and whispered as he went, "Take it as a compliment. I've been dangerous all my life."
The two continued down the street with for a few paces, then Dr. Smryna started smiling.
"What's tickled your fancy now, old man?"
"It's Thomas."
"Thomas has tickled your fancy? This seems to be an odd revelation."
Smyrna just gave Nic a dull stare in response.
After a long moment Nic almost sheepishly continued in a low-toned, half-dead whisper, "What has tickled your fancy, Thomas?"
"You had said you have been dangerous all your life, and I began imagining what that would be like in your childhood."
Nic chuckled, "I would say that the title applies there, though in an entirely different way."
"I should hope a different way."
Nic laughed. "Yes, a different way. I was dangerous because I always said the wrong thing."
"Do explain."
"Socially, politically, culturally, any way I would always say the wrong thing. Outspoken in my curiosity, I guess. I always questioned what should not be questioned. It made some people hate me, and made me 'dangerous' to have around if you wanted to have a normal conversation."
"You mean you didn't know how to keep your mouth shut?"
"Oh no, I knew how. I just deliberately did not restrain myself." Nic laughed again, a higher pitched sort of snorty chuckle.
"Then I'd agree that you are dangerous. Anyone who can't restrain his tongue could set the whole world on fire."
"And that's my plan, too, if they won't let me speak."
Smyrna shot a curiously angry glance at Nic. "I don't know what deluded me into helping you, but now I am beginning to think that I am assisting a madman."
"Oh, I am a madman, Smyrna, a very mad man. I am mad for so many things. But I do not think that it is I that am crazy, so much as the whole rest of the world."
"I don't think everyone else is threatening to burn away all humanity if they don't get to have control."
"Oh but they are, Doctor, but they are. All in the little limited ways they are. They all throw their tantrums when they lose control. Most of them have only power enough to mess up a few other people's lives, maybe only spoil a day or two, but I," he raised the pitch of his voice, "But I... I am more powerful. If the world doesn't sober up and leave me at peace... they may all rest in peace."
"No exceptions?"
"None."
"I suppose you think a burned-out world would be a pleasant one? Would you really enjoy it if you successfully annihilated every voice that resisted you?"
Nic did not answer.
Sensing victory, Smyrna pressed his advantage, "I suppose you realize that you would do them all what they have done to you? You complain of being repressed, that you cannot speak as you would. So instead you would repress every one else in eternal silence, so that you can glory in your exalted cemetery paradise."
Nic kept his gaze on the sidewalk, carefully not stepping on any cracks. Eventually he muttered, "But it isn't fair."
"Life isn't fair, Doctor. A life spent in pursuit of fairness will fall dead on the track no closer to the end than when the gun fired, without divine intervention."
"I do not allow for the divine."
"And there will come a day when the divine will not allow for you. Then you will see what He thinks of all your denial of Him."
Nic remained in silence.
So Dr. Smyrna struck the final chord, "And what then, Nic? What then?"
Nic looked up, surveyed his surroundings, and said, "We had best avoid using our names. I'll be Paul."
Smyrna smiled to himself, thinking, "I hope so." Then he said aloud, "And I'll be Stephen."
More name games and intriguing dialogue in the next part....
Monday, August 6, 2012
Crook Q Part 47
Today is a special day. Not only because I got up early and the sun is shining, but also because it's my birthday. And now to help the two elder scientists catch up with the young one. The only thing that bothers me is that these scenes move so fast... no matter. There will be more epic actionness, later.
The doors on the bus hissed shut, just slow enough for Smyrna to see his son take a seat as the bus began rolling away. They stared after the bus and read the digital sign on the back, "Street 92 & Delta."
Smyrna was most familiar with the mapping of the city. "That's a number of blocks down that way."
Nic twitched his mustache. "You think we can out pace it and meet him at the end?"
"Not a chance, without drawing attention to ourselves."
"Well let's duck in an alley then and ditch these lab coats." The two scientists stepped out of sight for a moment and tossed their lab coats under a rusted-out dumpster. They reemerged and did their best to look like ordinary concerned citizens.
As more and more official cars came running around the bend they made off. Bumping and jostling their way down the street, they tried to not appear to be in too great of a hurry. A few blocks down they caught up with a knot of regular workers moving toward the tallest tower in sight. Nic and Smyrna cautiously joined the tail of that group, looking as carefully as they knew for concealed weapons.
They passed through a small park, one of the rare patches of grass in the city. The thoroughfare had been surrounded by exotic trees in flower pots at some time in the past, but those plants had choked to death and were now overgrown with ordinary moss and weed. Nic remarked on the degree of sanitation and cleanliness in the area, "It's interesting how every concave surface in the city eventually becomes a garbage receptacle."
Smyrna stuttered a step to fall back even with the younger scientist. He whispered, "Remember. You have seen all this before. Nothing is unusual."
Nic made an anomalous grunt noise, unwilling to admit mistake, unable to pretend innocence. He just pushed along ahead, half a stride in front of Smyrna.
In an effort to avoid being seen as unusual, the two crossed the street multiple times, sometimes waiting for the traffic lights to change to their advantage. The only sign of their constant apprehension was the hair sticking up on the back of Smyrna's neck, an involuntary impulse he wished he could control.
The tower was beginning to loom over them when loud speakers erupted, "Attention United Citizens: Criminals have escaped their containment at the Paradise Come Lab on Street 80 and Delta. They are armed, dangerous, and seditious."
The two tried not to break their stride, but couldn't help but cock their ears to listen to the speaker. Their pace quickened ever so slightly, against their will.
"Two are religious Unaccepted. If you see anyone suspicious, or have information as to their whereabouts, report it immediately to the nearest United Peace Outpost, or the first United Peace-Keeping Officer you can find."
Nic barely refrained from yelling, keeping it to a harsh whisper, "Well, at least they know I'm not as bad as one of you."
Smyrna winked, "Or else they don't yet know about Ephesus and figure you are one of us."
"I am just upset that they labelled me as seditious. It's you two Christians who are seditious."
"So says the one who refers to the United Representatives as 'clowns' and their scientists as 'fluffy.'"
"That is not the same. That insulting, not seditious. I cannot imagine them blaring over the city that I am insulting. And between the two of us, I am the only one armed, too. Their announcements need some work."
Smyrna snorted, "I do not believe they are as concerned about exact truthfulness as we Christians are."
"It's not Christianity that makes me honest."
Smyrna turned his head at Nic, "Then what is it?"
Nic smiled, "Who ever said I was honest, anyway?"
Smyrna continued walking in silence, until he broke it saying, "I don't think I have ever been referred to as dangerous before."
Nic passed Smyrna and whispered as he went, "Take it as a compliment. I've been dangerous all my life."
No guesswork involved in finding out what happens to Nic and Smyrna next. Read on!
The doors on the bus hissed shut, just slow enough for Smyrna to see his son take a seat as the bus began rolling away. They stared after the bus and read the digital sign on the back, "Street 92 & Delta."
Smyrna was most familiar with the mapping of the city. "That's a number of blocks down that way."
Nic twitched his mustache. "You think we can out pace it and meet him at the end?"
"Not a chance, without drawing attention to ourselves."
"Well let's duck in an alley then and ditch these lab coats." The two scientists stepped out of sight for a moment and tossed their lab coats under a rusted-out dumpster. They reemerged and did their best to look like ordinary concerned citizens.
As more and more official cars came running around the bend they made off. Bumping and jostling their way down the street, they tried to not appear to be in too great of a hurry. A few blocks down they caught up with a knot of regular workers moving toward the tallest tower in sight. Nic and Smyrna cautiously joined the tail of that group, looking as carefully as they knew for concealed weapons.
They passed through a small park, one of the rare patches of grass in the city. The thoroughfare had been surrounded by exotic trees in flower pots at some time in the past, but those plants had choked to death and were now overgrown with ordinary moss and weed. Nic remarked on the degree of sanitation and cleanliness in the area, "It's interesting how every concave surface in the city eventually becomes a garbage receptacle."
Smyrna stuttered a step to fall back even with the younger scientist. He whispered, "Remember. You have seen all this before. Nothing is unusual."
Nic made an anomalous grunt noise, unwilling to admit mistake, unable to pretend innocence. He just pushed along ahead, half a stride in front of Smyrna.
In an effort to avoid being seen as unusual, the two crossed the street multiple times, sometimes waiting for the traffic lights to change to their advantage. The only sign of their constant apprehension was the hair sticking up on the back of Smyrna's neck, an involuntary impulse he wished he could control.
The tower was beginning to loom over them when loud speakers erupted, "Attention United Citizens: Criminals have escaped their containment at the Paradise Come Lab on Street 80 and Delta. They are armed, dangerous, and seditious."
The two tried not to break their stride, but couldn't help but cock their ears to listen to the speaker. Their pace quickened ever so slightly, against their will.
"Two are religious Unaccepted. If you see anyone suspicious, or have information as to their whereabouts, report it immediately to the nearest United Peace Outpost, or the first United Peace-Keeping Officer you can find."
Nic barely refrained from yelling, keeping it to a harsh whisper, "Well, at least they know I'm not as bad as one of you."
Smyrna winked, "Or else they don't yet know about Ephesus and figure you are one of us."
"I am just upset that they labelled me as seditious. It's you two Christians who are seditious."
"So says the one who refers to the United Representatives as 'clowns' and their scientists as 'fluffy.'"
"That is not the same. That insulting, not seditious. I cannot imagine them blaring over the city that I am insulting. And between the two of us, I am the only one armed, too. Their announcements need some work."
Smyrna snorted, "I do not believe they are as concerned about exact truthfulness as we Christians are."
"It's not Christianity that makes me honest."
Smyrna turned his head at Nic, "Then what is it?"
Nic smiled, "Who ever said I was honest, anyway?"
Smyrna continued walking in silence, until he broke it saying, "I don't think I have ever been referred to as dangerous before."
Nic passed Smyrna and whispered as he went, "Take it as a compliment. I've been dangerous all my life."
No guesswork involved in finding out what happens to Nic and Smyrna next. Read on!
Saturday, August 4, 2012
Crook Q Part 46
Updates: My vacation went awry and it is over already, so I am back to posting. The Four Golems one last weeks poll, so some day soon we will start seeing posts from there, after I outline the basics of a plot. The current poll is seeing nice participation. It is a more fun one than many of my previous, so pick at will; you are allowed to choose multiple options. And, finally, we are returning to a neglected plot line. How Crook Q himself attempts to escape Paradise Come Labs. (Tell me someone noticed the play on "Paradise Lost.")
A tall building of shining silver, steel, and glass, it really did bespeak power and grandeur. At the top was what appeared to be a massive telescope. Engraved on a stone at the door into the building were the words, "A Tower into Heaven." Ephesus looked closer at the stone and saw under it these words etched, "If any god should be offended by this tower, let it come and prove itself. We are the United, and cannot be divided."
Ephesus only wished and prayed that He would come.
--
Ephesus calm and small voice barely fell into the elevator. "Dad, get inside."
"No son. Let me do it. They can't do anything to me worse than they've done before."
"You're right."
Ephesus took one step toward the hatch into the elevator, then grabbed his dad and tripped him headfirst into the hole. Nic caught him on his way down and restrained him.
Now Ephesus was yelling, "The magnetic repulsion brakes will catch you softly at the bottom. Just hold onto the walls and keep your head tucked in."
Then he jumped over to the roof of the elevator, drawing one of his explosive tubes out of his coat.
"Ephesus!" Smyrna barked up from his awkward position in Nic's arms.
"Shut up old man!" Nic insisted. "Last thing we need is to be screaming each others names." Nic tossed him off into the corner of the elevator, then squatted down against the bottom of the elevator himself, bracing his hands against the railing.
Smyrna just lay there, somewhere between anger and sobbing.
One loud blast didn't even shake the elevator. Nic looked up the hatch and saw the first flash, feeling the elevator quiver ever so slightly. He wasn't sure Ephesus had a very good idea.
Then the last one got it. Gravity edged away as the elevator free fell for a few seconds. Nic reached into his chest pocket and clasped the micro chip, just to assure himself that it was still there. Once he was out, it was all he needed.
Then gravity came back, very suddenly at first, crushing Nic's hand into his chest, then softly and the elevator stopped. Doctor Smyrna had sat up, but remained in shock and fury in the corner.
"Come on, old Christian, help an unbeliever open these doors. Unless you're praying, in which case don't let me stop you. At this rate, your petitions may be all we can hope for."
"All we can hope for is what He would give us, Nic."
"Then let's both hope that He would let us through the door, because otherwise, your son has managed to stick us in quite a spot." Nic was busy trying to wedge the barrel of his gun between the doors. Smyrna saw all the lights on the control panel flash. He pressed the "open door" button.
Nic flashed his gun back into hiding as the doors opened with a happy chirp. He took one astounded glance at Symrna before proceeding out the door into the crowded lobby as though nothing were happening. Smyrna crept up behind him and whispered, "Thank God we got out of there, literally. And that is an imperative."
"Aww, shut up."
Smyrna smiled, probably the first time that had been his reaction to that phrase.
The two scientists walked out of the doors without being accosted, as streams of other scientists exited. They stood on the corner, wondering how they should get out. A bus was approaching from one side. Nic whispered, "I do not think mass transit is our best chance at escaping long term."
"No. We are supposed to meet at the tallest building in sight, remember?"
"Yes," said Nic.
The two stepped forward, trying not to appear as though they were seeking out a specific building. If they appeared to be unfamiliar with the city, that alone might get them caught. Smyrna half-whispered, "Down there, to the right."
Nic looked, and his eyes went wide as a series of crashed and flashes and bangs erupted out of the side of the building.
Smyrna turned and watched as a young man in his son's old coat from home jumped out of a second story window. In the confusion of the startled and mad evacuation, the tumult was barely noticed, much less the young man as he slipped into the milling crowed of upset scientists.
Nic and Smyrna jockeyed there way through the crowd towards where they had seen Ephesus, because Nic knew he had the cell phone. They had agreed for Nic to carry the microchip because Nic insisted that they didn't need both of the precious pieces of technology on one person, and Ephesus couldn't let Nic carry an underground cell phone.
The doors on the bus hissed shut, just slow enough for Smyrna to see his son take a seat as the bus began rolling away. They stared after the bus and read the digital sign on the back, "Street 92 & Delta."
More of Nic and Smyrna's adventure has been published!
A tall building of shining silver, steel, and glass, it really did bespeak power and grandeur. At the top was what appeared to be a massive telescope. Engraved on a stone at the door into the building were the words, "A Tower into Heaven." Ephesus looked closer at the stone and saw under it these words etched, "If any god should be offended by this tower, let it come and prove itself. We are the United, and cannot be divided."
Ephesus only wished and prayed that He would come.
--
Ephesus calm and small voice barely fell into the elevator. "Dad, get inside."
"No son. Let me do it. They can't do anything to me worse than they've done before."
"You're right."
Ephesus took one step toward the hatch into the elevator, then grabbed his dad and tripped him headfirst into the hole. Nic caught him on his way down and restrained him.
Now Ephesus was yelling, "The magnetic repulsion brakes will catch you softly at the bottom. Just hold onto the walls and keep your head tucked in."
Then he jumped over to the roof of the elevator, drawing one of his explosive tubes out of his coat.
"Ephesus!" Smyrna barked up from his awkward position in Nic's arms.
"Shut up old man!" Nic insisted. "Last thing we need is to be screaming each others names." Nic tossed him off into the corner of the elevator, then squatted down against the bottom of the elevator himself, bracing his hands against the railing.
Smyrna just lay there, somewhere between anger and sobbing.
One loud blast didn't even shake the elevator. Nic looked up the hatch and saw the first flash, feeling the elevator quiver ever so slightly. He wasn't sure Ephesus had a very good idea.
Then the last one got it. Gravity edged away as the elevator free fell for a few seconds. Nic reached into his chest pocket and clasped the micro chip, just to assure himself that it was still there. Once he was out, it was all he needed.
Then gravity came back, very suddenly at first, crushing Nic's hand into his chest, then softly and the elevator stopped. Doctor Smyrna had sat up, but remained in shock and fury in the corner.
"Come on, old Christian, help an unbeliever open these doors. Unless you're praying, in which case don't let me stop you. At this rate, your petitions may be all we can hope for."
"All we can hope for is what He would give us, Nic."
"Then let's both hope that He would let us through the door, because otherwise, your son has managed to stick us in quite a spot." Nic was busy trying to wedge the barrel of his gun between the doors. Smyrna saw all the lights on the control panel flash. He pressed the "open door" button.
Nic flashed his gun back into hiding as the doors opened with a happy chirp. He took one astounded glance at Symrna before proceeding out the door into the crowded lobby as though nothing were happening. Smyrna crept up behind him and whispered, "Thank God we got out of there, literally. And that is an imperative."
"Aww, shut up."
Smyrna smiled, probably the first time that had been his reaction to that phrase.
The two scientists walked out of the doors without being accosted, as streams of other scientists exited. They stood on the corner, wondering how they should get out. A bus was approaching from one side. Nic whispered, "I do not think mass transit is our best chance at escaping long term."
"No. We are supposed to meet at the tallest building in sight, remember?"
"Yes," said Nic.
The two stepped forward, trying not to appear as though they were seeking out a specific building. If they appeared to be unfamiliar with the city, that alone might get them caught. Smyrna half-whispered, "Down there, to the right."
Nic looked, and his eyes went wide as a series of crashed and flashes and bangs erupted out of the side of the building.
Smyrna turned and watched as a young man in his son's old coat from home jumped out of a second story window. In the confusion of the startled and mad evacuation, the tumult was barely noticed, much less the young man as he slipped into the milling crowed of upset scientists.
Nic and Smyrna jockeyed there way through the crowd towards where they had seen Ephesus, because Nic knew he had the cell phone. They had agreed for Nic to carry the microchip because Nic insisted that they didn't need both of the precious pieces of technology on one person, and Ephesus couldn't let Nic carry an underground cell phone.
The doors on the bus hissed shut, just slow enough for Smyrna to see his son take a seat as the bus began rolling away. They stared after the bus and read the digital sign on the back, "Street 92 & Delta."
More of Nic and Smyrna's adventure has been published!
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