The Dead Room Trilogy

by Stephanie Erickson

  Mason couldn’t help but feel gratitude for the woman’s attitude. Despite the fact that he didn’t want to be second, he appreciated Lehman’s avoidance of drama. As he reached out to shake Lehman’s hand, he spied his pack sitting by the front door, where it had been since he’d arrived in Alkoff’s home.

  He hesitated for a moment, wondering if it was finally time to tell Mattli about his black box of mysteries, and Lehman smiled, mistaking Mason’s pause for awkwardness. “Don’t mention it, Elder Hawkins.” She placed special emphasis on Mason’s new title.

  “I wish everyone would just call me Mason.”

  “I’m sure there are a few among the elders who would wish you could still be called that too,” Mattli said with a small smile of his own.

  The three elders looked at each other, not sure how to proceed. It was late and they were all exhausted from the day’s events, but after everything that had transpired between them, they weren’t sure how to say goodnight.

  They walked to the door, and Mason caught Lehman before she could slip out. “Lehman. I hope we can continue to count on you. The elders need more like you among them.”

  Lehman nodded graciously, and left Mason and Mattli standing in the doorway.

  “Elder Hawkins, if you’d like to stay here tonight, you can,” Mattli said after a moment. “I think I will hold watch over the body.”

  “Actually…” Mason hesitated. He felt sure he could trust Mattli, but what if sharing his secret about the box was damaging in some catastrophic way? Before he could think any more about it, he retrieved the box from the backpack. “I have something to show you.”

  24.

  Mattli immediately recognized the box. He didn’t, however, recognize why Mason would’ve taken it from the dead room.

  But when Mason held it out to him, Mattli realized it was smaller than it should’ve been, maybe five inches by seven inches and only two inches deep. The box that held the nanobots was a bit larger, maybe the size of a piece of paper, and much deeper.

  He took the box from Mason and weighed it in his hands. “It’s heavier too,” he murmured. Turning the box in his hands, Mattli noticed the simplistic outer appearance, which was, indeed, identical to the nanobots’ box. It had to be Ashby’s, just like the other one.

  “What do you think’s inside?” Mason finally breathed the words out loud. They’d been screaming to get out for days. Oddly, though, saying them aloud didn’t bring him much relief. His curiosity and concern still warred with each other.

  “It’s hard to say. Where did you find it?”

  “Ashley was actually the one who found it. She tripped over it when we were walking on the mainland.”

  Mattli nodded, sparing Mason the horror of retelling Ashley’s death. “A relic,” he said, barely more than a whisper. “And how perfect for the descendent to find it. Almost like he left it for her.”

  Mason hadn’t thought of it that way before. “Honestly, that’s why I came back.” Mason spoke the words quietly, as if confessing a sin… or maybe a lie. “I wanted to try to use my tools to get into the box.”

  Mattli laughed as he set the box on the coffee table and sat back, staring at it in wonder. “I don’t think you would’ve found your tools terribly effective.” He was silent for a moment. “It could be anything really,” he finally said. “It could be everything. The answers we’ve waited centuries for could be locked inside that box.” He reached for the box, but Mason’s voice, sharp in the late hour, stopped him.

  “It could also be more nanobots.”

  Mattli pulled his hand back reluctantly, not sure what he’d hoped to accomplish anyway. The complicated locking mechanism ensured the only place the box could be opened was inside the dead room.

  “There’s only one way to find out. We must go back to the dead room.”

  They walked through the darkness in silence, both wondering if Mason held the key to their world in his hands.

  When they pulled the shrubs away from the door, Mason said, “You don’t normally spend this much time in the dead room, right? Because I’m starting to feel like this is all I’ll be doing as an elder—traipsing in and out of this God-forsaken room.”

  Mattli let out a bitter laugh. “No, we don’t normally spend this much time in the dead room.”

  Once inside, they didn’t really know how to proceed.

  Mason sighed. “I’ll go in with the box. If everything is all right, I’ll knock on the door. Hopefully, you’ll be able to hear it through that thick metal.” He knew the offer might lead to his demise, but what choice did he have?

  “What about the box of nanobots? We can’t leave it inside with you. And what if the signal to open the box harms you? No one alive has ever been inside the dead room when it’s operational.”

  “Hence, its name.” He paused, thinking the process through. “If you keep the original box in the outer chamber, will the machine still open it? Is the signal that opens the box that strong?”

  Mattli shook his head. “I don’t know, to be honest.”

  “Oh, Ashby. So what do we do?”

  “Honestly, it would be safer to stow the original box at Elder Alkoff’s home. He has a good safe there.” Mason frowned at the idea of walking all the way back. The events of the day weighed heavily on him.

  “How do you feel about stashing the nanobots in the bushes outside the room?” Mason asked. “Think it’s far enough from the signal?”

  “If it’s not, we risk killing everyone and everything on this island.”

  “We’re risking that already, if there are a million more nanobots inside this box.”

  Mattli was tired too, so he gave in. “It will probably be fine. Frankly, it would probably be fine in the outer chamber here. The inner one is lined with that metal.”

  “What are you saying? Do you want to keep the box out here with you while you press the open sesame button?” Mason asked, one eyebrow raised in Mattli’s direction.

  “No. You’re right. Go ahead and stash it outside. Just make sure to hide it well. We can’t afford to have the box fall into the wrong hands. In fact, it’s never been outside of this room unattended before.”

  Mattli felt a twinge of guilt. He’d been on the job for less than twelve hours, and he was already being careless with their most precious possession.

  “Don’t worry. It’ll just be up there unattended for a few minutes.” Mason tried to reassure Mattli, but his words offered little in the way of reassurance. He watched Mason absently as he deposited his mystery box on the floor of the inner chamber and retrieved the box of nanobots.

  “I’ll just be a second,” Mason said. He must have detected Mattli’s uncertainty, because he followed up with, “It’ll be fine, Mattli. Trust me.”

  “Oh, sure, trust a convicted killer and see what happens,” Mattli said, not sure what had gotten into him. He never spoke so crassly. “Elder Hawkins, I apologize. I’m not sure what got into me. Of course I trust you.”

  Mason laughed. “You should loosen up more often, Elder Mattli,” he said, placing emphasis on the word Elder. “You might come to enjoy it.”

  Mason disappeared aboveground for only a few moments. He returned a bit breathless, wiping the dirt from his hands on the front of his pants. “Are you ready?”

  “I suppose so, yes.” Mattli responded, somewhat less than confident in their choices of late. He wondered how Alkoff would’ve handled this situation. Honestly, he probably would’ve kept the nanobots in the inner chamber with him and damned the consequences. At least there was a failsafe button. He was about to speak up when he saw that Mason was already in the dead room, sitting Indian style in front of his box.

  “You know, if something happens to me, you can have Lehman for your second. Maybe that’s how it’s supposed to be anyway.” Mason winked at him, but a heavy lump of dread formed in the pit of Mattli’s stomach as he watched Mason sitting in the middle of the dead room.

  “Well, what are you waiting for?”


  Mattli shrugged and walked over to the big, metal door, closing it and locking Mason inside.

  Mason didn’t know what to do. He braced himself, not knowing when Mattli would push the button. Like he’d said to Ashley, he didn’t really believe in God, let alone that Ashby would be waiting for him with open arms to welcome him into the afterlife. It seemed like such an archaic idea. Their ancestors had believed in their deity staunchly, and look where it had gotten them. If there was a God, or Ashby, or whatever, Mason didn’t want to be a part of Him, since He seemed to have abandoned his creation.

  Left without God or Ashby, he wasn’t sure how to make peace with his potential death. He’d been running from it for days. Sitting cross-legged in front of the box, he wasn’t sure why he’d put in so much effort. He’d run and run and run, only to face his own mortality inside of a small, black box.

  Mason heard a click and jumped as the lid to the box sprang open.

  25.

  When he heard the click, Mason braced himself. The scream was ready at the back of his throat; it only waited for some small trigger to be released. Horrible pain, a loud noise, the end of his life as he knew it—anything. But it never came.

  Slowly, he opened one eye, and then the other. When he peered down at the box, he found a small, leather-bound book. He tilted his head and reached down tentatively to retrieve it, forgetting for the moment his obligation to let Mattli know he was still alive.

  He reached in and pulled the book out.

  The volume was small and heavy in his hands. He flipped haphazardly through the pages, fanning his face as he went. He found nothing remarkable in the least.

  Mason laid the book in his lap, letting it fall open to the very first page. It was handwritten, almost like some of the journals kept in Alkoff’s library. Dated January 2024. Before the apocalypse.

  Since he’d found it on the mainland, the date wasn’t so outlandish.

  Then his eyes traveled to the opposite page. Something was scrawled in a hurried hand. The ink was uneven and thickly laid in some places, and the angles were sharp. Just the sight of it made Mason feel a little panicky. His heartbeat quickened and his breath came in short bursts as he read the words.

  I am Bennett Ashby. And I am not the savior.

  The Dead World

  By: Stephanie Erickson

  For the finish.

  It’s never easy to get there,

  But when I do,

  It’s gonna be sweet.

  1

  January 2023

  “And that’s how I’m going to cure cancer.” He sat back, crossed his ankle over his knee, and folded his arms across his chest, watching Ashby with a smug expression.

  Bennett Ashby eyed his best friend with a raised eyebrow as he took a bite of his cafeteria-style mystery meat. “Is that so?”

  Christian Mendelsohn leaned forward, the sleeves of his dress shirt rolled up, and his brown hair falling down into his face. He brushed it away impatiently, and it immediately fell forward again. “Ashby, come on. You have to admit that this is exciting. We’re on the verge of a breakthrough here.”

  “It is exciting,” he said, trying to muster all the enthusiasm he could. After all, he and Mendelsohn had been friends since high school. Judy had almost torn them apart, but by some miracle that went against the natural order of things, they’d stayed friends even after she’d made her choice. Good friends no less. And Mendelsohn’s success was important to him. He just wished they weren’t competing for the same thing, again.

  Chewing his lunch, he tried to come up with something supportive, encouraging. But everything he wanted to say was selfish. Well, my work is making strides too. NASA called me about the nanobots. They’re interested. So, instead, he stayed silent.

  His friend eyed him from across the table. “Ashby. You could work with me on this, you know. We could crack this together.”

  It wasn’t the first time Mendelsohn had made such an offer. But Ashby was an engineer. His work with the nanobots was where his heart was. Medicine was Mendelsohn’s field. And yet, Ashby found himself thrust into the medical field alongside his best friend, learning as he went along. They took two totally different approaches, competing to be the first to find a cure for cancer.

  Mendelsohn’s concept was brilliant. Elegant. And less destructive than Ashby’s. That made him nervous. DNA editing was a brand-new concept. Mendelsohn planned to change the DNA of whatever cancer the patient had, and in doing so, force it to exterminate itself. The beautiful thing about it was that it had such far-reaching implications. Not just cancer could be helped by this. Mental illnesses like Alzheimer’s and ALS, as well as deadly diseases like MS and cystic fibrosis. The man had a grade-A miracle on his hands. And, once again, Ashby was just a bystander watching him claim his prize.

  Well, that wasn’t really fair, Ashby thought as he shoveled some mashed potatoes into his mouth so he wouldn’t have to talk. Everyone had thought Judy loved Mendelsohn. It was obvious. But for some reason that was still beyond Ashby, she’d picked him. He thought it was because she’d gotten pregnant, and his job was more stable at the time. He was secure. The two men were both budding scientists, but Mendelsohn had still been searching for a position at the university back then.

  Now, eighteen years later, their daughter was ready to start college, and Ashby hoped Judy didn’t regret her decision. He didn’t. He loved them both with every fiber of his being. He never questioned Ashley’s parentage, and Judy had never offered.

  It didn’t matter. He’d gotten the girl. And now, it looked like Mendelsohn was going to get a different kind of prize. He was closer to the cure than Ashby, and the jealousy tasted bitter to him.

  “Mendi, how come you never date?” The question came from left field, and Ashby knew it would catch his friend off guard. It wasn’t something they talked about. It was something Judy pressured him about with an oddly knowing smile when he was over for dinner. But not something they discussed man to man.

  “What? What does that have to do with nanobots and DNA?”

  Ashby shrugged. “It doesn’t. I just thought we needed a new topic for once.”

  “I fell in love with my work, Ashby. I don’t need anything more than that.” But something about his friend’s tone seemed off. Like he was lying for some reason. Before he could put his finger on it, Mendelsohn changed the subject.

  “So how’s the world of tiny robots?” Mendelsohn stabbed at his salad a little too aggressively in Ashby’s opinion. What was he hiding?

  “Oh, well, not as exciting as the world of DNA editing, that’s for sure. Although, I did get a call from NASA. They’re very interested.”

  Mendelsohn’s fork fell from his hand. He reached across the table, taking Ashby’s hand. Mystery meat flying through the air, Mendelsohn shook Ashby’s hand and clapped him on the shoulder across the table.

  “That’s great man! NASA.” He sank back into his seat with a dazed look on his face. “It’s everything you’d ever dreamed of. Congratulations.” It was so sincere it almost brought the mystery meat back up for Ashby. How could Mendi be so genuinely excited? Wasn’t he at least a little jealous? No, of course not. He had his own advances to focus on. Ashby wasn’t a threat to him.

  Ashby bristled at the thought. Why not? He was every bit as smart, and had just as many opportunities as Mendelsohn.

  He must’ve been scowling into his food, because Mendelsohn said something about it. “What’s wrong, Ben? Didn’t they offer you enough money?”

  “What?” He looked up at his friend, who had genuine concern on his face. “No, it’s not that. It’s nothing. It’s great news actually.” He worked hard to change his tone—to mean it. Because it was great news. It was just overshadowed by his friend who was about to be the savior of the world.

  “Just because they don’t use the bots to cure cancer doesn’t mean they’re a flop, man.” He leaned toward Ashby, trying to get him to make eye contact. “You’ll still have everything you
wanted. A nicer house and that car you’ve had your eye on. You’ll be set.” He sat back in his chair, looking wistful again. “NASA. That’s really great, man.”

  Ashby sighed. Mendelsohn made a good argument, and the smile that made its way across Ashby’s face was proof. “Thanks,” he said, and meant it.

  Back in the lab, he thought about Mendelsohn’s offer to work together. He wasn’t one to ride on someone else’s coattails. As he peered down at his tiny creation through the super-powered microscope, he knew he wanted his own success. And the little beast before him was his ticket.

  Just as he was working on reconnecting some circuitry within the bot’s delicate legs, his assistant interrupted him.

  “I’m sorry, Mr. Ashby.” It startled him so badly that he destroyed the bot.

  “Damn it.” It would take hours to repair, if he could salvage it at all.

  “Another one of the rats died.”

  Ashby bit back a second curse. Silently, he rose and followed the small girl across the lab. She was young and enthusiastic. Just what he needed. But she was also emotional, which wasn’t helpful in a scientific atmosphere.

  As they approached the deceased rat, Ashby knew what killed it before he even looked at it. He also knew the girl was near tears. It was the same song and dance every time.

  He put a hand on her shoulder. “You shouldn’t get so attached to them.”

  “It’s hard not to. They have little personalities. Likes and dislikes. I get to know them, taking care of them like this.” Her voice was thick with unshed tears.

  Ashby didn’t respond. Instead, he looked down at the rat lying on its side, eyes bulging. He hated that. Why didn’t they ever close their eyes? Almost as if they never died peacefully. He did that to them. Stole that from them.