Flawed (Perfection)

by J. L. Spelbring

  The recently assembled pool table and games had been disassembled and stored away. Beds had taken their place. The only things left were the gym equipment and the mat over by the fire escape that had been chained for security purposes. By the look of things, the soldiers weren’t going to get enjoy the rec center anytime soon.

  Marcus nodded in agreement.

  Turning toward the soldiers, Mathew said, “We’re done.”

  “You,” the one on the left said, pointing at Mathew, “pick up the mess. And you, take the tools to the shed and report back to your barracks.”

  “Yes, sir.” Marcus grabbed the tool belt and departed. One of the soldiers left with him.

  As Mathew swept the floor under the scrutiny of the remaining soldier, the door opened. Freezing wind swirled through the room and brushed its icy fingers through his hair. A chill creeping along his spine, Mathew turned to see the Commandant and Ellyssa’s siblings. Nausea rose in his stomach.

  Aalexis and her brother entered, their gait confident. She wore a bright red coat, a hat covering her blonde strands, and Xaver wore a black pea jacket.

  The soldier stood at attention, his arm extended. “Heil.”

  Xaver turned toward the enlisted man, disgust evident. “Dismissed,” he said.

  Confused, the soldier faced the Commandant. The commander tossed his chin up and the soldier departed without a further word.

  “I guess this will do,” Aalexis said, looking around the Rec Center.

  “We aren’t running a hotel.”

  Aalexis shot the Commandant a glare and fear crossed his face, clamping his mouth shut.

  Starting toward the beds, the young girl walked right past Mathew. He held his breath, hoping she didn’t notice him. The hope fizzled after she paused and turned around, her unsettling gaze locking onto him. Mathew recoiled under the intensity of her stare. He had no control over the reaction. Remembered flames licked through his veins. Someone had once told him the memory of pain fades with time, but Mathew would never forget the fire.

  Her face remained unemotional, no hint of recognition appearing. Lurking behind her eyes, though, he saw a glint of delight and amusement. Always at her side, Xaver stood behind her. Amusement twinkled behind his stoic look, too.

  “Doc,” Aalexis said, stepping toward him.

  Mathew’s leg muscles tensed with the desire to flee. Somehow, he managed to stay put. Probably because his feet felt like they had been encased in cement.

  “I understand you have been treated well.”

  “Yes,” Mathew managed, his gaze cast toward the floor.

  “Food sufficient?”

  “Yes.”

  “I think we should talk again.”

  Lifting his head, Mathew met her cold azure eyes, identical to Ellyssa’s. “If we must, but I have nothing new to offer the discussion.”

  Her lids lowered as a subtle flinch ghosted her face. Mathew went down, flames devouring him, fire consuming him. He couldn’t think; he couldn’t see. All he could do was feel the extraordinary pain. He was pretty sure he screamed. Then it was gone, and he found himself curled into a tight ball on the ground, a low burn still casting heat. A groan escaped his lips.

  “Doc,” she said.

  Struggling, Mathew opened his eyes and managed to lift his head.

  “Maybe that reminder will prompt a reconsideration on your part. I will allow you time to mull it over.”

  Aalexis turned away and left him on the floor as if he was a roach she’d just stepped on. Actually, Mathew felt like a roach she just stepped on.

  Xaver followed as they went to examine the exercise equipment. Mathew turned his head and saw the Commandant looking at him, his face pale with horror, useless arms dangling at his sides.

  “Commandant Baer,” Aalexis called, “I will require that additional items be brought in.”

  “Go,” the commander mouthed, then turned his attention to the young blonde demon. “Of course. I will have one of your men make a list for you.” He emphasized the key words as he walked past Mathew.

  Your men? Had she taken over the camp?

  He knew the answer.

  She had.

  Things were going to change, and not for the better.

  Mathew rose on shaky legs that rebelled under his weight and stumbled out into the welcoming, freezing cold.

  35

  After following Dr. Loki down the four flights of steps into what Ellyssa assumed was his office, Ellyssa and the others took a seat at the rectangular table. As usual, Rein sat next to her, his hand on her knee, Woody on her other side. Trista and Dyllon sat across from them. The two leaned close together as couples often do. She’d noticed more than once Rein and her doing the same thing, like a magnetic force with an eternal pull.

  “I hope you enjoyed the tour,” Dr. Loki said, sitting at the head of the table.

  When Dr. Loki told Dyllon that they hadn’t seen anything yet, he wasn’t joking. For an establishment beneath the earth’s surface, these people didn’t lack. Besides electricity and an indoor garden, the establishment housed a hospital, a communications room used for receiving any ground patrol’s interactions, a soundproof firing range, and leading off the training room was a weight room that had left Ellyssa’s muscles twitching with longing.

  Even their computers were capable of connecting to the network. Dr. Loki’s associate had assured them, though, that messages were only received. The computer was strictly used like a flytrap. With virtual fingers, it’d reach out, snatch information, and dart away, leaving behind an undetectable computer-generated dust in its wake, impossible to find unless someone happened to be looking for the specific signature at a specific time.

  The reach the doctor had hinted at delved far and wide, which made her question how he couldn’t know if the other Resistance organizations had survived. Actually she questioned a lot. But every time she’d probed through his mind for answers, she’d kept looping back around to his block. Somehow, Ellyssa was going to have create the leak she needed to bust through his wall and let his memories pour through.

  She certainly hadn’t learned anything from The Pit’s residents. During dinner, she’d singled out individuals from the mass, flexing, shaping and bending her wall to open the gate to grab bits and pieces of their thoughts. Some questions about the newcomers, easy to pick out because they’d cast furtive glances their way. Mostly, though, the inhabitants thought about specific elements of training, and some performed katas in their heads, replaying the flow and technique. Ellyssa had enjoyed those the most, watching their mental images dance.

  She’d gleaned nothing that caused her soldiering side to tingle with suspicion. The inability to read Dr. Loki did, though.

  Woody answered the doctor. “It amazes me that you are able to acquire such technology. It’s very impressive.”

  Dr. Loki beamed. “Well, now that you’ve had a look at all we’ve accomplished, I’d like to ask you some questions.”

  The five of them exchanged looks before Rein took the lead. “What would you like to know?”

  “Basics first. Who are you?”

  Rein squeezed Ellyssa’s knee. “Go ahead,” she said.

  He faced Dr. Loki. “We’re from Missouri,” he began.

  Besides leaving out Ellyssa’s identity and The Center, their story unfurled through Rein’s words. Certain parts still wrung her heart and reopened wounds. By the pained looks of the others, they were bothered by the recounting, too. Ellyssa entwined her fingers with Rein’s, grateful he was there. She pulled strength from him.

  As Rein spoke, Dr. Loki leaned back in his chair, captivated. All the while, though, his eyes kept drifting to Ellyssa. Setting aside her pain from the ones she’d lost, she entered the doctor’s mind. The capture of the Missouri Renegades was not a surprise to him—old information. His concern was genuine, his horror of the tale being spun, but that wasn’t what she wanted to know. Ellyssa dug deeper and found herself again with the wall, towering over he
r. Only this time, a hole had appeared, a small leak. Bits and pieces of thoughts dribbled, familiar images. She prodded.

  “We came to rescue our friends,” Rein finished.

  “That won’t happen for a few days,” Dr. Loki said, his voice thoughtful. “Blizzard conditions have been forecasted. As of right now, the temperature is negative seventeen and that doesn’t include the wind-chill factor.”

  “No,” Trista whispered, her shoulders slumped. Dyllon wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close.

  Closing his eyes, Woody massaged his temples. “Do you know how long?”

  “At least three days. You will be safe here.”

  Rein ran his free hand through his hair. “Thank you.” His tone was weighed with disappointment.

  Dr. Loki waved the sentiment away. “We’ll be delighted. Besides, I already expected you.”

  “Why?” Ellyssa asked, her gaze trained on the doctor. The more she kept the doctor focused on her, the better. Her mental probe continually picked at the hole, widening an escape for the flood. Disturbing but indistinct information puddled before her. She had to keep him focused on her. “Why would you be expecting us?”

  The doctor propped his elbows on the table. Agitation darkened the teal in his eyes and twisted the corners of his thin lips down. For a second, Ellyssa saw the true age that hid behind the male’s youthful appearance. “About a month ago, we picked up bits and pieces of communication about a band of Renegades heading this way. All of you,” he said with a sweep of his hand, “could have jeopardized our whole operation. You must understand, besides an occasional routine patrol, there has been little to no activity here for years. Even when they reopened Amarufoss, there was only a basic sweep of the area.

  “Then, about three weeks ago, the heavy patrols started. Even the Gestapo were called. We were on full alert. No one ventured out, not even to hunt. The ramifications of being caught… It could bring our whole cause down—at the very least, cripple the Resistance for generations.”

  He leaned back in his chair, peaking his fingers under his chin. His eyes leveled on Ellyssa. “What’s strange is that the patrols suddenly stopped. The Gestapo left, the soldiers returned to their posts back at the camp. Nothing. Then you came along, as expected.”

  Suddenly, a crack zigzagged up the doctor’s mental block. The wall crumbled, chunks falling down like a rockslide. Everything the doctor had worked so hard to keep caged poured freely, pieces and bits of memories broken like glass. Things weren’t in chronological order, but Ellyssa had seen enough, including a glimpse of the female subject, Ida, whose file Ellyssa had stumbled across before she’d escaped, images of The Center, her father only much younger. Dr. Loki had worked with her father, had been part of the experiments. Like a tsunami, Ellyssa’s soldiering surged forth enveloped in anger and hatred. Her hand tensed, squishing Rein’s fingers until she felt bones rub together.

  Rein winced. “Ellyssa?”

  Dropping his hand, Ellyssa shot from her chair. Everyone’s heads turned toward her. Fear snapped the doctor’s lids into circles.

  “You knew der Vater,” she accused, fighting every instinct to clamber over the table and wrap her fingers around his throat. “You worked at The Center. You worked with der Vater.” Ellyssa heard the monotonous tone of her voice, knowing her expression was just as vacant, and the way she’d reverted to her father’s name. She didn’t care. She had to protect. Survive. She’d seen the capability their host possessed.

  Four sets of eyes whipped back toward the doctor.

  “What?” Rein said, raising from his chair.

  Dr. Loki squirmed as disbelief dropped his jaw. “I—It’s true. Leland was right.” he muttered.

  The mention of Leland’s name came as a surprise; Ellyssa hadn’t caught that in the shards of his memory. Not that it mattered how Dr. Loki knew Leland, who had worked as her father’s assistant and with the Renegades. Nothing mattered but the hatred squirming in her gut, the innate desire to act upon the anger coiling snake-like, ready to strike.

  “Leland?” Woody sputtered, pushing his hair out of his eyes. “How do you know Leland?”

  Fury bled into Ellyssa, feeding everything her father had designed her to be. She kicked the chair out from behind her and prowled around the table. She could feel the apprehension roll off her family’s skins, their eyes widened with confusion. She didn’t care. “You performed experiments. You killed. I saw the file. Subject 20. She was put to death,” Ellyssa snarled, the robotic-like tone evaporating in her anger.

  A flicker of Ida’s corpse lying on a gurney.

  “I didn’t,” Dr. Loki denied, his voice shaky.

  “You were part of the whole design.”

  An image of her father and Dr. Loki formed. Both men had smiles on their face as a child was born with fine blonde hair and deep blue eyes.

  Sweat beads popped out of Dr. Loki’s forehead and the tip of his nose, his anxious eyes twitching from side to side as if seeking an escape. He started to get to his feet, but Woody, who had come up behind him, put his palm on the male’s shoulder. The doctor plopped back down in the chair. The chunks of long-ago memories evaporated as if a sudden drought dried his mental progression. Fear replaced everything except for her advancing form.

  Ellyssa loomed over him, red coloring her vision, her fists clenching and unclenching. Fury worked her jaw. She bent her chin down and dangerously glared at their host through slitted lids. “Why would you keep this from us?”

  “I—I didn’t know who you were.”

  “You lie. You recognized me.”

  He shook his head. “No. No. I wasn’t sure.”

  Ellyssa’s hand shot out and clutched Dr. Loki’s throat. His hands wrapped around her wrist, futilely trying to set himself free.

  “Please.” His voice pinched within her grip.

  “Now you can be sure. I am what der Vater created.”

  “Ellyssa.” Rein stepped next to her. He placed his hand on her cheek. “Let him go.”

  Ignoring him, she jerked away from Rein’s touch and squeezed harder. A satisfying shade of blue tinted the doctor’s face. His lips opened and closed like a fish’s. His eyes bulged within their sockets.

  Just a twitch of my wrist, she delighted, then dead.

  Rein grabbed her wrist, not gently either. “Let him go now, Ellyssa,” he ordered.

  Orders. She scoffed. None of them are a match for me.

  The words charged through Ellyssa’s head and scurried away before she had a chance to fully comprehend what she’d just thought. The implications. Her grip loosened, and the doctor took in a ragged breath. In an instant, she’d changed into the monster that her father had created. How easily she became his creation. Shocked, Ellyssa’s stoic expression crumpled into horror.

  Rein let go of her wrist. “What are you doing?” His voice sounded far away, hollow, like a long tunnel separated them.

  “I…” Having no answer, Ellyssa’s words faded. Two opposing forces warred inside her. Rage sizzled defiantly, willing her hand to stay locked around the doctor’s tender flesh. Revulsion at how easily anger took over. She released Dr. Loki.

  Sputtering, chest desperately heaving, Dr. Loki tried to claim much-needed air.

  Recoiling, Ellyssa backed away until her back pressed against the wall, and she slid her mental wall back into place, cutting off the images from his splintered memories.

  Everyone stared at her. Dyllon’s and Trista’s faces were colored the same, bleached white. Neither of them had ever seen her in full soldering mode before. Their eyes held concern as well as incredulity and fear. Even Woody, who had witnessed her soldier side before, stilled, his stormy grey eyes as wide as his mouth.

  They were afraid of her. The air oozed with fear.

  Rein stood in front of her, blocking out everyone. Concern in his eyes, his hand traveled the length of her arm, over her shoulder, and stopped as he cupped her cheek. “What happened?”

  Ellyssa shook her head. �
��I do not know. His memories were… The things they did…”

  “Are inexcusable,” Dr. Loki finished, his voice cracked and harsh. He exhaled a rattling breath.

  Ellyssa peered over Rein’s shoulder at the doctor. The blue tint on his face had changed into red blotches. Bruises the shape of her fingers flared angrily on his neck. Even now as she looked at the male she’d almost broken, hatred twisted in her midsection. And shame coated it.

  The doctor’s eyes met Ellyssa’s. “Please give me a chance to explain,” he said, painfully grimacing with each word. “I withheld information, but so did you,” he pointed out. He inhaled another noisy breath. “My wall is down. You can look for yourself.”

  Afraid her instincts would kick in again, afraid she wouldn’t stop next time, Ellyssa said, “I cannot.”

  Rein’s fingers, feather light, traveled back down her arm and he laced their fingers together. “It’s okay.”

  “I do not think it is.”

  Her voice was robotic-like, monotonous, her old voice. Rein heard it too, a frown dipping his mouth.

  “Breathe, Ellyssa.”

  She did. Once. Twice. Three times. Cool air rushed into her lungs, settling the tension in her stomach, calming her soldiering side. She expelled the breaths through her nose.

  “Better?”

  Ellyssa nodded.

  “Do you want to…um…scan him?”

  Still unsure if she had a grasp, she shook her head.

  “Come and sit down.” Rein pulled her arm.

  Hesitant, Ellyssa willed her feet to move and let Rein take her back to the table. Woody slid into the seat next to her. Between Rein’s comforting caress as he trailed his thumb along the back of her hand and Woody’s soft touch as he drew little circles at the base of her neck, she felt the creature her father had made withdraw back into the recesses of her being.

  Worried, Ellyssa chewed on her bottom lip as Dr. Loki’s breaths evened out. She’d felt anger and hatred before, but nothing like what the doctor had invoked. She feared what she could do, what she could become. She knew the soldiering side of her, the monster, still lurked within her depths, but the way it had sprung forth, unannounced and uninvited, uncontrolled, it terrified her. If push came to shove, she would always do what she needed to do; that was something she’d come to terms with, but she wanted to make the conscious decision to do so.