The Inner Fence: a dystopian post-apocalyptic young adult novella series (Remnants of Zone Four Chronicles Book 2)

by N. G. Simsion

  Something bit him on the back of the neck. It hurt a lot more than a mosquito. He smacked it with his free hand and although he didn’t get a good hard look at it before it fell into the grass, it felt to be about the size of a bee or maybe even a wasp. He cringed in pain and then hurried his step.

  They stepped out of the orchard onto the grassy field between the dorms and the cafeteria.

  “Let’s get something to eat,” Zero said as he shook his fingers through his hair to rid his head of any insects that might have latched onto him.

  “Yeah. Speaking of food—why didn’t I see you at lunch today?” Lefty asked.

  Zero was relieved to hear Lefty’s tone change from what it had been by the fence. He seemed back to his normal self now. “We had a lot to do and we were running behind schedule. We didn’t move very fast since Lemon had to spend the whole day teaching me the ropes. We ordered our lunch in.”

  Zero told Lefty all of the details of his day he deemed to be exciting. He bubbled over even when talking about crates of bananas. Lefty gritted his teeth when Zero mentioned Flea making an unwelcomed visit to the docks, but then laughed out loud when he told him the part about Lemon knocking him down.

  After crossing the field and entering the back door of the cafeteria, Lefty paused and scanned the room. Zero began walking straight toward the food counter, but Lefty veered off in a different direction.

  “Where are you going?” Zero asked.

  “I think I need to pay Flea a little visit.”

  “No. Please don’t.” Zero knew he sounded overly desperate, but he didn’t care. “Are you looking for reasons to get us kicked out of Quirigua?”

  Chapter 7

  Zero hurried to the opposite side of the room. If Lefty was going to start a scene with Flea—one that would almost certainly turn into a fight—he didn’t want to be anywhere near it. The last thing he wanted right now was to be labeled a troublemaker, especially when Lucid and others were keeping a close eye on him.

  Flea was sitting at a long table amongst the security guards. He had just taken a bite of his potatoes when Lefty stepped up quietly behind him, wrapping his arm around his throat. He squeezed, causing him to spit bits of mashed potatoes across the table. Flea began to writhe trying to break loose, sending silverware flying.

  The crashing of utensils and plates drew a hush over the room as every pair of eyes turned toward Lefty. People rose to their feet to get a better view. Those farthest away stood on their chairs and tables in order to see. Lefty looked up at the other security guards as if he was expecting them to advance on him, and although they were all on their feet, nobody intervened or said a word.

  “I heard what you did this morning, chump,” Lefty said calmly into Flea’s ear. “You came to the loading docks looking for a fight? Well, you found one.” Lefty looked up at all the eyes in the room staring at him. He squeezed tighter and Flea gurgled, clawing at Lefty’s arm.

  As usual, Zero slinked his way to the back of the crowd.

  Flea’s body went limp. Then Lefty released him. He slumped forward, landing face-down on his plate. Lefty grabbed him by his shirt collar and pulled him upright to keep him from drowning in his mashed potatoes. He patted the unconscious Flea on the shoulder as if to say “I’ll see you later, buddy,” and turned to walk away. The security guards encircled him, towering over him, but still nobody said a word.

  “He had it coming,” Lefty said, shrugging his shoulders.

  A few chuckles sounded from the crowd. Lefty’s surprise was especially evident when the circle of security personnel parted and gave him a clear exit.

  All except one.

  Captain intercepted him at the end of the table. “Do you want to tell me what that was about? You assaulting one of my guards?”

  “What he said was true.” Lemon said, approaching Captain. “Flea came to the docks this morning to pick a fight. The new guy was busy at work, minding his own business, and ‘Flea-Flea’ began jabbing him in the chest with his nightstick, pushing his weight around.” Lemon looked about him, apparently searching for his coworker, but Zero was hiding behind a gaggle of spectators at the other side of the room.

  “Is that so?” Captain said.

  Every eye in the cafeteria turned to look at Flea, who was just starting to come to his senses, but who was not lucid enough to register what was happening.

  Captain waved Lefty away, which nonverbal command he quickly obeyed. By the time Lefty reached the food line, Zero was again at his side.

  Captain walked over to Flea and gave him a small slap in the face to wake him up. He didn’t yell. He didn’t have to. Although Lefty and Zero couldn’t hear Captain’s exact words from across the room, his meaning was clear. Once Captain was done laying into him, each one of the other guards took turns giving him a piece of their mind.

  “I love this place.” Lefty picked up a plate and began shoveling food onto it. “Good food. No classes. Flea doesn’t have any goons to fight his battles for him. We won the jackpot.”

  Zero had a hard time taking his eyes off of Flea. He had never seen him dressed down like that before, not even by the professors at school. When the adults lectured him back at school, he was always able to brush it off because he had his goons by his side to make him feel big and important. He had never seen a humble Flea before now. It was a beautiful sight.

  “It does almost seem too good to be true,” Zero said.

  “Do you want to know where I learned how to choke Flea out like that?”

  “Not really.”

  “I’ll tell you anyway. Remember when the frontline scouts were at the testing place and one of them chased down the Remnant that was trying to get away? He choked him out just like that. I was paying attention.”

  They chose two empty seats where they could have a clear view of Flea. They wanted to keep an eye on him, to continue reveling in the moment. Every time they looked up, Flea’s eyes were already fixed on Lefty. Flea eventually stood up, keeping his gaze locked on him until Lefty winked and grinned, causing Flea to grit his teeth.

  “I’m going to sit at that table tomorrow,” Lefty said.

  “Lefty, don’t go doing anything stupid. Don’t pick a fight. You got away with it this time, but you’ll get us in trouble.”

  “Don’t be such a wimp. I’m not scared of him.”

  “I know you’re not scared of him. But you don’t need to go out of your way to cause trouble or Lucid will have us kicked out of here sooner rather than later.”

  “Relax. Everything is fine. Flea’s harmless without his little gang to fight his battles for him.” He looked up again. Flea was now bussing his tray. They engaged in one last staredown before Flea tucked his hands into his pockets and kicked the cafeteria door open on his way out. “I was just saying that I want to sit at that table. It looks like the place where the cool guys sit.”

  “All the seats there are taken.”

  “Today they are. Tomorrow they might not be. I bet it doesn’t take too long before the other guards tell Flea to sit somewhere else.”

  “Okay. That’s one seat. There are two of us. And I’m not going to sit on your lap.”

  “Dude. What’s wrong with you?” Lefty shoveled an enormous spoonful of potatoes into his mouth, and then continued talking with his mouth full. “Why don’t you want to make any new friends? You already said you like Lemon. He sits there. I was with Root all day. He’s awesome. Those two guys and Captain look like they’re best friends. I want in with them.”

  Zero shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know. I don’t need a lot of people around me. That’s all. I’m happy the way I am.” He sighed and bit into his slice of cantaloupe.

  Lefty shook his head. “Yeah. Well, I’m sitting there tomorrow, so you can come with me or you can sit alone.”

  The number of people in the cafeteria shrank as people finish
ed their meals and left. As Lefty and Zero were scraping the last bits of beef stroganoff and green beans off their plates, they noticed others beginning to move the tables and chairs around. The tables in the center of the room were pushed up against the wall. Chairs were then arranged into a large circle where the tables had been. Most of those who claimed those seats were people Zero and Lefty didn’t recognize, but Root, Captain, and Lemon sat together on one side.

  “What do you think is going on over there?” Lefty asked.

  “Oh yeah. I forgot to tell you.” Zero put down his fork and began wiping his hands and face with his napkin. “Lemon said something today about how the guys get together after dinner sometimes to talk about life.”

  “Life?”

  “Yeah.”

  “What about life?”

  Zero shrugged. “The meaning of it.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean? Life just means you’re not dead.”

  “Lemon says he thinks there’s more to it than that—like we’re all here in this world for a reason. ‘The bigger picture,’” he made air quotes with his fingers. “Or something like that.”

  “Like what?”

  “I don’t know. I’m just telling you what he said.”

  “Well, it doesn’t make any sense to me, but if joining in on their weird discussion gets me into their inner circle, count me in.” Lefty stood up, shoved the last bite of a scone into his mouth and ran his tray over to the stack of dirty dishes. He hurried to the circle and pulled up two chairs.

  “How great is this!?” Root went around the circle, pointing at each person as he counted them. “Twenty-two of us today. That’s awesome. We’ve never had more than fifteen before.” He slapped Captain on the back, who was sitting next to him. “And we have Captain here for the first time today. I’m glad you finally decided to accept my invitation and stuck around.”

  “Actually, I’m here at someone else’s request,” Captain said. He held a napkin in his hand and was tearing it into small pieces. He kept his eyes low. He looked uncomfortable, like he wished he was anywhere but there.

  “Oh yeah? Who asked you to sit in?” Root asked.

  Just then the double doors opened and Lucid stepped into the cafeteria. He stood in the doorway for a moment with his chin up, looking down his nose and scanning the room. He made eye contact with just about each person individually, as if he were taking notes on who was present. When he got to Zero and Lefty, his eyes narrowed. He stared twice as long at them as he had at everyone else.

  The room fell silent; every smile disappeared… except one.

  “Well hello, sir!” Root didn’t seem the least bit intimidated by Lucid’s superior expression or purple robe. “Glad you could join us today.”

  “Indeed,” Lucid said, one eyebrow raised.

  Chapter 8

  Zero felt his body tense as Lucid approached the circle of people sitting around the center of the cafeteria. Lucid paused when passing him by, bending down low enough that his nose was only a few inches away. As he studied Zero he bit his bottom lip and shook his head. “You’re such a waste of talent.” Lucid said it so quietly that the rest of the circle couldn’t hear.

  He turned his back and then walked over to someone who was occupying the chair next to Captain. He stood over him with his hands on his hips, saying nothing. The boy sitting there grew increasingly uncomfortable the longer Lucid stood over him. He began looking around the room to avoid eye contact. “Move!” Lucid eventually yelled. “I’m sitting next to Captain.”

  The young man scurried out of his seat. Rather than finding a new seat in the circle, he hurried through an opening in the chairs and ran straight for the door. He disappeared outside without ever bothering to turn around.

  Captain leaned back in his chair and folded his arms. Zero doubted he realized he was doing it, but he was leaning so far away from Lucid that his shoulder was leaning against Root’s.

  Lucid smiled. He crossed one leg over the other, interlocked his fingers and placed his hands on his knee. He looked different than usual. His presence made everyone just as uncomfortable as ever, maybe even more so, but this was the first time Lefty had ever seen him smile. But there was something disingenuous about that smile. Untrustworthy. Dangerous.

  “I drove all the way out here to join your little discussion,” Lucid said. “I got word about an order request for a certain book—about the meaning of life?” He paused for effect and looked around the circle, making eye contact again with everyone whose eyes weren’t glued to the floor. “When I heard about it I called up Captain here,” he placed a hand on Captain’s shoulder, squeezing it and smiling like they were old friends, “and he informed me about these meetings you’ve been having. I thought it would be prudent if I sat in tonight. I thought I might share a little bit of my life experience with all of you. After all, I am your superior and it only makes sense that I be the one who helps shine light on your little questions.”

  “Excellent. Welcome, then.” Root clapped his hands together and smiled. “So… do you have the book?”

  “No.”

  Root waited for Lucid to say more, but it didn’t happen. “Do you know when or how we might get one?”

  “You’re not going to get any book like that.”

  “Why not?”

  Everyone gasped simultaneously. By the look of fury that flashed across Lucid’s face, it was obvious he wasn’t used to people questioning him—especially not those whom he considered as beneath him.

  Lucid quickly wiped the anger off his face, replacing it with a counterfeit smile. “Let me ask you something, boy.”

  “Root. My name is Root, not ‘boy’.”

  Lucid’s phony smile shrank and then disappeared altogether. “Let me ask you something… boy. How much can you tell me about what life was like more than a hundred years ago? How much can you tell me about the people who lived on this earth before The New Beginning?”

  “I’ve always thought of them as being just normal people—normal until the virus broke out, that is.”

  “If you knew anything about them, you would know that the people before The New Beginning were obsessed with the same things you’re gathered here to talk about today.”

  “And is there something wrong with that? We just think there is a bigger picture we could be looking at. We just want to know what the meaning of life is.”

  “Yes, boy. There is something wrong with that. You see, when the old world became obsessed with the meaning of life, they began to develop theories. Some people began to feel one way, others felt another way. It always came to the same conclusion: God, a Supreme Being, an Almighty Mysterious Someone sitting up on a cloud. They all thought there was someone watching over us like ants.”

  “Interesting. Like, someone who’s in charge of all of this.” Root swirled his finger in the air, pointing in every direction. “Someone above us that we can’t see. Making sure the world stays… I don’t know, helps keep the world from total chaos. Interesting.”

  Lucid jumped to his feet. He picked up his chair, raised it over his head, and flung it across the room. It bounced across two tables before crashing into the wall. “No. It’s not interesting. You don’t get it. When one group is convinced that their god is one way, and another group is sure that their god is something else, then they disagree. They don’t get along. They refuse to bend. They fight. They start to think that they have to stand up against anyone who believes differently than they do because their god wouldn’t tolerate infidels. Get it? It’s called religion, and religion is a seed of war. That’s all religion is good for.” He stood over Root, pointing his finger down at him.

  All eyes turned to Root, whose eyes were fixed on his lap. He traced his finger over and over on his knee as he thought, and then he looked up at Lucid. “No. I don’t buy that.”

  Lucid’s eyes narrowed. His face turn
ed crimson.

  “I know what you’re trying to do. You want me to shut off my brain. You think that throwing chairs, stomping your feet, and yelling is going to scare me. I bet right now you’re thinking of punching me.” Root tapped one finger on his chin, inviting him to give it his best shot. “For what? You think that will make us shut off our brains? You think that will make us stop thinking? You can’t take that away from us.” Root stood and faced Lucid nose to nose. “We’re just sitting here talking about interesting stuff. We are just gathering around to have a pleasant, peaceful discussion and you’re saying that’s somehow going to turn into a war. I don’t see that happening. We’re just talking. We’re all friends.”

  Lucid took a few deep breaths, fuming. He turned his back to Root and faced the rest of the group. His voice softened, but became even sterner. He closed his eyes and took a moment to gather himself. “You’re walking down a dangerous path here, boys. Forget it all. Life is about working hard and playing hard. Enjoy what you’ve got, especially now. Because once you get old, you’re old. And once you’re dead, you’re dead. If you waste your time on meaningless garbage like this, you’ll one day look back and wish you had taken better advantage of your younger years. You’ll wish you had taken more time to actually live your life rather than sit around talking about it.”

  “You heard the man,” Root said. “Turn off your brains.”

  Lucid spun to face him. They were immediately nose to nose again. They stared at each other for a long time, both refusing to blink. So long, in fact, that the small crowd began to break up without another word.

  Zero pointed a thumb toward the double doors, but Lefty didn’t budge. He grabbed Lefty’s elbow and as he pulled, Lefty began to walk, keeping his eyes on Lucid and Root.

  “That was just starting to get good,” Lefty said once they were outside.