Kill School: Slice

by Karen Carr

  I know I’m supposed to be happy for him. My dad taught me that smiling puts you in a better mood. I try to smile. However, his news makes me feel very alone. My token, what I have to do, still burns a hole in my heart. I wanted him to be in the same unfortunate circumstances as I am. I want to be free. I am selfish.

  I wipe the tear that is now rolling down my face.

  “I feel like an idiot,” I say.

  “You don’t look like one,” Burke says. He tilts my chin up. “In fact, you look quite beautiful in the moonlight.”

  I smack his hand away, hoping he’s teasing, wanting him to be serious. He’s so close that I could kiss him. His mouth opens as if he wants to kiss me. I feel so lightheaded, that I move into his arms so that I don’t fall. When I feel my body giving into Burke’s, I push away.

  “My mother would kill me,” I say. “She wants me to stay away from you.”

  Burke slowly shakes his head. “Your mother isn’t trying to protect you from me. She’s trying to protect you from the resistance. It’s dangerous. She should know.”

  Burke pauses and looks at me for a long time.

  “Why should she know?” I’ve heard of the resistance from my brother. They want the token system destroyed. When he doesn’t answer, I poke him in the stomach. “Burke?”

  “She’s going to kill me,” Burke says. He glances around and spots a few high-flying microdrones along with another larger one, all of them will be unable to record sound at their height.

  “She’s going to kill you?” I ask, horrified.

  “No,” Burke says. “Well, maybe. She’s going to kill me if she finds out I told you she’s in the resistance.”

  My teeth start to chatter.

  “My mother is in the resistance? Like, the resistance?”

  My mother is a baby doctor. She may be related to Regulator Thorn. She would never be against the government. I have so many questions for her.

  “I have to call her,” I say. I tug Burke to get him to come the other way down the path. I have to get to the administration building.

  “You can’t call her now,” Burke says. “I shouldn’t have told you yet. I should have waited until after you finished your training.”

  “Why tell me at all?” I ask. “My mother obviously didn’t want me to know.”

  “You believe me?” he asks.

  I go through my reasoning aloud.

  “Why would you lie? You obviously know her. She doesn’t like you. How would she have formed an opinion if she didn’t know you? She hates the government. My brother and mother are always railing against it.” I pause when I mention my brother.

  “Is Sebastian in on this too?” My stomach hurts.

  “Sebastian’s gone a little more radical,” Burke says. His tone is tinged with hate.

  “More radical than a group of people trying to over through the government and stop the algorithm?” I say this all a little too loudly. Several microdrones fly in closer to us, activated by the panic in my voice.

  Burke steps forward and covers my mouth. We stand like this until the drones hit the sky again. When it is safe enough to talk, Burke presses his cheek to mine and speaks softly.

  “Aria, we need you. With your stealth skills and your token we can end this all.”

  My teeth chatter goes to my whole body. I’m trembling all over.

  “I’m taking you inside,” Burke says.

  He weaves his fingers in mine and leads me to the cabin. My hair snaps at my face and flies all around us as we walk through the snow in silence. I feel like one of those animals at the circus. A lion being led into the ring to be whipped until I open my mouth and roar. How do I ever come back from this?

  Burke and I avoid all the festivities, dinner, the victory celebration, fireworks. Instead, he tells me all about the resistance and my mother’s involvement in it.

  The resistance was started a long time ago, longer than Burke can remember. My mother actually brought Burke into the group. They met at a birth, similar to the one I witnessed. Burke was helping another token killer with another victim not an infant but a toddler who had been hit by a PRT. Then, she was so impressed with his skills and his humanity, that she asked him to join.

  The resistance is a loose network of people who have three prime directives, to stop the algorithm, to find new places to live, and to take out the Regulators. Burke feels that even if the algorithm can be changed, the Regulators will find some other way to kill us. They are very strong, have a powerful militia, and support from many citizens, especially the elderly.

  “You can help us with the third directive,” Burke says.

  The third directive. Because of my amethyst token, I am officially in the resistance. Wait until my mother finds out.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Saturday morning comes with a jolt. I don’t want to get out of bed. I don’t want to open my curtains. I don’t want to wake up. I have no choice. Everyone’s chatter about the games last night makes it impossible to sleep.

  I slide out of bed and join the others at the table. The game has changed the entire mood of the cabin. Priyanka and Aisha are fighting about whether or not they want to play. Priyanka thinks the games are disgusting and Aisha can’t wait. She wants one of the fireball shooting cannons. Demi is lecturing half of the girls on their hair, how they need to braid it or slick it back to avoid burns.

  Mateo is giving Shah some pointers, how to aim the puck and hold his stick. By Mateo’s tone, I guess that he’s not happy about failing grace and being left out of the games. Perhaps I’ll ask Vladimir if Mateo can have another chance at grace.

  I sit next to Vanessa and watch Erwin and his goons, Tane and Mal, whisper conspiratorially at the end of the table. I glance at Burke’s bunk. The curtains are open and he is gone.

  “He’s gone every morning,” Vanessa says. “I hear him walk by.”

  “He goes to feed the birds,” I say. My eyes linger on his bunk as if I expect him to appear.

  “You know what he taught me in stealth,” Vanessa says. She taps my arm to get my attention. “How to make a poison dart out of a pine needle and the skin of a frog.”

  She pulls a pine needle from her sleeve. My eyes go wide. Poison on the breakfast table.

  “This one isn’t poisoned,” Vanessa says. She lowers her head conspiratorially. “Although I have enough left over to make this whole table sick.”

  I grin. “Maybe we can poison the other team.”

  Vanessa’s eyes brighten.

  “I was kidding,” I say.

  I pick up the pine needle. It reminds me of a slender knitting needle. The trees in the north are so much bigger than our trees. Even without the poison, it could do some damage.

  “Can I keep this?” I ask.

  Vanessa nods. “Sure. But, I sort-of lied about the poison. Be careful of the tip.”

  I drop the needle. “Vanessa! I almost touched it.”

  Vanessa points to the tip.

  “See, it’s got a bit of wax on the end,” she says. “Most likely it wouldn’t have hurt you. If you need to use it, just scrape that off. I gave one to Mateo too.”

  “Great,” I say somewhat sarcastically.

  I climb back on my bunk and stash the pine needle in my drawer. Along with my switchblade and pocketknife, I am getting a collection of sharp objects.

  Just as I am sliding down from my bunk, Burke comes in carrying a box of rifles in his arms. He shoots me a sideways glance.

  “Just getting up, Aria?” he asks.

  “Funny,” I say as my feet land on the floor. I’m self-conscious about my nightshirt and consider grabbing a sheet. I’m still getting used to sleeping with so many strangers. But, we are all her in our nightshirts feeling weird and uncomfortable with one another.

  Erwin ends his conversation with Tane and Mal, and walks over to Burke.

  “What are the guns for?” Erwin asks as he peers inside the box.

  “Laser tag.” Burke puts the box on the ta
ble and takes out a gun. “I thought we could use a break today. Anyone want to play?”

  Erwin grabs a gun. “You mean, these aren’t real?”

  Erwin fake-shoots all the girls on the other side of the table. He’s annoying the crap out of me. I could take him down in a minute.

  “Girls against boys,” Erwin says.

  Burke twists the gun out of his hands. “Sit down, Erwin. We’re going to pick teams fairly.”

  “Why isn’t that fair?” I ask. “We’ll play against the boys.” I purse my lips at Erwin, and then turn back to Burke. “We could easily take the guys on.”

  Burke tilts his head as if he’s trying to come up with a good response.

  “I don’t think it’s a good idea, Aria,” he says rather lamely. “There are more boys than girls.”

  Vanessa stands.

  “We’ll take Mateo,” she says.

  “Sounds fair to me,” Mateo says.

  I smile at Burke as pleasantly as possible. I like seeing him squirm. He’s always in protecting mode. Protecting his students. Protecting his birds. Protecting the Quad Squad. Today, I don’t feel like being protected.

  “You can go on the boys’ side,” I say. I wave my palm at him to shoo him away.

  “Up for a little friendly competition?” Burke grins as if I made the wrong decision and then he winks at me.

  “Who said anything about friendly?” I ask.

  I try to wink, but it comes out more like a blink.

  Burke tells us to hurry up and shower. I grab my stuff and rush outside, around the cabin, to the showers. I’m the first one in and the first one out. My wet hair is frozen by the time I get back to the common room.

  Burke’s there smiling at me. He hands me a gun.

  “You know how to shoot this thing?” he asks.

  “Sure, I do,” I say. I take the gun and examine it. It has a sight and a barrel. Simple enough.

  “I saw your scores in fire.” Burke says.

  “Rub it in,” I say. “You’re going to be the first one to go.” I fumble with the gun trying to find the safety. I can’t figure out how to turn it on.

  “Better wait for the rest,” Burke says. “So I don’t have to explain the game twice.”

  I sit on the couch and wait. And wait. And wait. And wait. Finally, everyone has finished getting ready except Priyanka who is apparently sick.

  Burke hands out the guns.

  “These guns are expensive,” he says. “Antiques, hundreds of years old. We get a kick out of using them and can’t afford an upgrade. When you are out running around, don’t drop it in a puddle. It’s going to make a noise when you start it. Hold the gun for a couple of seconds until you see the ready signal. Like this.”

  Burke starts the gun by flipping two switches.

  “You got that, Aria?” he asks.

  I don’t answer. I just hide behind Vanessa and Demi. I don’t need him to point out my flaws to the opposite team. I can do that well enough on my own.

  Burke points to a green screen on the gun. “Pull the trigger once for a single shot. Hold it down for multiple shots. Don’t waste your bullets. You only have forty rounds. When you’re out, you’re out.”

  He pulls out earmuffs with red antennas sticking out of each muff and puts them on Erwin’s head. He demonstrates by shooting Erwin a couple of times. Each time he pulls the trigger, the gun makes a whizzing noise. Erwin’s muffs blink yellow and then red.

  “Won’t the noise give us away?” Vanessa asks.

  “That’s part of the game,” Burke says. “Plan your shots wisely. You don’t want to give out your location. Shoot to kill.”

  Burke has brought in white coats with fur-rimmed hoods, gloves, hats, scarves and heavy snow boots. The clothes are used, and patched many times, but warm. When we are all suited up, I feel like a polar bear. I’ve only seen them in pictures, all wooly and muscular. I bet they are fierce.

  When we are ready, Burke takes us back to the woods behind the cabin. The air is colder than it has been and a new layer of snow is on the ground. Thank goodness for our new coats and boots. They are far warmer than our cloaks.

  “Don’t you think it’s weird that it’s getting colder?” Vanessa asks as we walk. “It’s spring.”

  “We’re north, Vanessa,” Mateo says. “North doesn’t have spring.”

  “The north has the most beautiful spring,” Burke says. “Wait a few weeks.”

  When we reach the woods, Burke stops at the edge. Birds are chirping, luring us in with their song.

  Burke tells us to form a strategy. When he blows his whistle, we are supposed to run into the woods. The boys and girls teams separate onto opposite sides of the field in front of the woods.

  We elect Demi captain. She instructs Mateo to hide since he is the best shot and assigns Aisha and a couple of the other girls to guard Mateo. She assigns Vanessa and me to herd all of the boys in Mateo’s direction so that he can take them out.

  “I’ll come with you,” Demi says to me. “The three of us will herd those boys.” She grins. “Shah’s mine if I can find him.”

  Demi, Vanessa, and I break up to cover more ground. I am stealth. My feet make no noise as I step through the woods. I am aware of every leaf crunched, every twig broken. I am a fox hunting my prey.

  I walk far into the woods away from everyone, so that I can come up behind the boys. Then I turn back and walk as quietly as I can, faster than before. I know the boys won’t be able to detect me like the animals were able to do. Sure enough, in a few short minutes, I spot Mal hovering near a tree.

  Mal has no idea how to hide. I watch him for a few moments wondering what to do. He’s an easy target, but shooting him will give my location away. It must be a setup. No one would be that stupid just to hang out in the middle of a laser tag game. Then, this is Mal.

  Suddenly, he crouches. I soon see why. Vanessa walks toward him. She has no idea he is there. I have to shoot him now. I step from the tree, take aim, and fire. A miss. Mal turns around looking for the noise. I duck before he spots me.

  I hear a crack and Vanessa screams. I jump to my feet and run toward her, forgetting about the game. Blood drips from her mouth. Mal stands over her with his gun. He aims it at me and I duck and roll. I reach Vanessa just as he is about to hit her again.

  He swings at me and I grab the barrel of the gun and step in between Vanessa and him at the same time.

  Suddenly, someone else grabs my shoulder and spins me around. It’s Erwin. He slugs me in the gut with his rifle so hard that I bend over in pain. I can’t breathe. I wheeze as Mal comes over and kicks me in the leg, sending me into a pile of leaves. The stupid earmuffs tangle in a branch on the ground as I try to get up. Mal and Erwin are going over to Vanessa again.

  Vanessa wails out in pain. I have to help her.

  Burke jumps over me and slugs Erwin in the jaw with the butt of his rifle. Blood spirts from Erwin’s mouth as Burke drops his gun and slugs him on the other side of the jaw. Faster than Mal can run, Burke is on top of him next. He punches him several times in the gut and kicks him in the nose when he goes down.

  Foolishly, Erwin jumps on Burke’s back. Burke flips him over and punches him in the ribs more times than I can count.

  Erwin doubles over.

  “Stop,” he cries.

  Burke has lost it. He grabs a big branch and is about to hit him over the head. Burke doesn’t have his token any more. He can’t kill Erwin and get away with it. I don’t want to be responsible for Erwin’s death no matter how snotty he is.

  I put my palms on the ground and try to heave myself up. The pain in my side burns through my core. I feel it rising up through my chest. I spit out a bunch of blood and yell for Burke to stop.

  “Stop it,” I yell. “It’s not worth it.”

  Burke pounds Erwin in the arm with the stick. I hear Vanessa’s whimpers.

  “Burke, please,” I say.

  Shah and Tane emerge from the woods and help pull Burke from Erwin. I
still can’t get up from the ground. The pain in my side is immense. Demi runs to my side followed by Aisha. I want them to stay with me, but tell them to help Vanessa.

  Burke is arguing with Shah and Tane.

  “Get them out of here then,” Burke shouts.

  The rest of our cabin mates arrive. Some kids help Shah and Tane take Erwin and Mal away. Demi and Aisha have Vanessa. She’s standing, crying, bending over, and standing again. Burke instructs Demi and Aisha to take Vanessa to the infirmary.

  “Everyone else. Go back to the cabin,” Burke says. “The game is over.”

  With everyone else gone, Burke comes over to me. His knuckles are raw and his jaw is set in a clench. He can barely look at me.

  “I’m so sorry,” he says. “I would have killed him if…” He stops talking, but we both know what he was going to say. He would have killed Erwin. He knows what it feels like, to take a life. Soon, I will, too. It’s a sick rite of passage into adulthood. One that I feel with every bruise and cut on my body.

  “Can you walk?” Burke asks. He puts an arm around my waist.

  I taste blood in my mouth and my ribs feel like they could be broken.

  “I’m not sure.”

  I take a step forward and then everything goes black.

  I wake to a rocking motion leaning against Burke’s chest. By the motion, and the soft noise of footsteps, we are going up some stairs.

  Burke talks to himself or whispers to me. I’m not sure which.

  “I’m going to kill him,” he chants. “I’m going to kill him. I’m going to kill him.”

  I feel a sharp pain in my chest with every step and squeeze my eyes shut to make it go away.

  I open my eyes to soft music and a bright light. I am no longer being carried. White sheets, curtains separating me from the other beds, and a comfortable mattress indicate that I am back in the infirmary. I must have passed out again.

  “You’re awake,” Burke says.

  He takes my hand, squeezes it, and then rests it gently on my chest. His hands are wrapped like a boxers, hiding the scrapes on his knuckles. I try to focus on Burke’s face, but every feature is blurry. His eyes resemble glass under water and his brows windswept sand. The light stings my eyes and tears roll down my cheek.