AfterLife

by S. P. Cloward

  “They’re behind us too!” Chloe screamed. Wes could hear her firing her EDDIE as well. One of them must have hit Charlie; Wes could hear him grunting on the floor. Through their earpieces they could hear that Xander, Jose, and Amanda were also under attack at their respective locations.

  Simon pushed Wes up against the wall, pressing his face onto the painted concrete. Five soldiers were on the floor, one of them Charlie. The rest of them retreated back into the doorways that lined the hallway. From where he was held, Wes watched as Chloe stepped quickly up to Charlie and shoved one of her heels into his left eye. Charlie screamed. She withdrew her heel and shoved it into his other eye. If they made it out of here without being severed, Wes knew without a doubt he could trust Chloe.

  More soldiers ran toward her and she continued firing darts at them. Some needed more than one to stop them. Wes could hear Meri doing the same from the opposite side. Then suddenly the grip on him loosened as Simon fell to the floor in spasms. Meri had shot him with a dart. There was a slight pause in the firing as the soldiers pulled back, but the floor was littered with Mortuis. Some of them fought to get up or pull out the dart that restricted their movement. Wes glanced into the room that contained his brother. Lyall remained motionless on the table, with the gray-haired man standing over him watching the events in the hallway. He needed to get his brother out of that room.

  “I hate this part,” Meri said, moving her head back and forth to see the corridor in both directions.

  “Why?” Wes pulled out his own EDDIE and prepared to fire. It was a stalemate. No new soldiers emerged from the doorways; the ones that were shot lay piled on the floor of the hallway in both directions.

  “Because,” Meri said, lifting her chin to motion down one end of the hallway, “the darts eventually lose their charge.” The fallen soldiers were beginning to pull themselves off the floor in the order in which they’d been shot. Meri and Chloe shot them again. “Eventually, we’ll run out of darts. They’re not firing on us because they know we’ll eventually exhaust our ammunition. Why waste darts on us? In a way, they’re starving us out.” She looked up at Wes and smiled, revealing her teeth. “It’s okay though. We still have friends on the way. Then the hunters will become the hunted.”

  Wes stepped into the room and pointed his EDDIE at the gray-haired man. “Disconnect him from the IV,” Wes said, motioning between the man and his brother.

  “I’m sorry Wes, but it isn’t time yet.” The man stepped back from the table and placed his hands in the front pockets of the doctor’s coat he was wearing. “He needs to stay connected for now.”

  “I will remove your eyes myself,” Wes yelled at the man and shot a dart at him. The man fell to the floor, his legs buckling under him, and he began twitching on the white tile.

  “Wes!” Meri’s voice came from the hallway. “We need you out here. I’ve got to reload.”

  Stepping back into the hallway, he could see the situation was rapidly disintegrating. More soldiers were inching their way from the doorways toward them. Wes started firing his darts at them while Meri reloaded, and then the two of them took over for Chloe as she reloaded. Only a few minutes passed before their EDDIEs were once more out of darts. Hurriedly, Wes began to pull the spare darts out of his pocket to reload.

  “Don’t,” Meri said as she pulled them from his hand and shoved them back into his coat. “You may need those later. We want them to think we’re out,” Meri said, lifting herself up on her toes so she could say it closer to Wes’s ears. “Now the fun starts.” She winked at him.

  Once the soldiers were sure no more darts would be fired, they were rushed and Wes hit the ground with a thud as two of them grabbed him from either side. Chloe managed to get past them with the last few darts she had and sprinted down the hallway out of sight. Meri was on the floor next to him, but she gave him an encouraging smile as she was carried off. Wes struggled wildly against the Mortuis who were holding him, but then remembered Meri’s words about playing their game. Well, he’d at least give them a good show.

  In his earpiece, Wes could hear that Jose, Amanda, and Xander were faring better than the three of them in the basement. No doubt that was due to the fact that he was the person of interest, and he was down here. Wes hoped they could hold their ground long enough to maintain an exit for them should he be fortunate enough to get his brother out without being severed. Hoping to speed things along, he allowed his captors to believe they had subdued him.

  “So you’re the one responsible for this unnecessary confrontation.” Wes was pulled to his feet and turned into the room to face the voice. The speaker was a tall, tanned man with dark hair. The smile on his face was one of pleasure. Wes instantly knew he was Seth. “I’m so glad you could be our guest tonight.” Jez stood behind the man and avoided making eye contact with Wes. Seth turned to her. “Thank you for arranging this gathering for us Jez, however, I’m sorry you can’t stay for the fun.”

  Jezebel looked up at Seth questioningly. Before she could process what he meant, she was grabbed by three soldiers who picked her up and carried her down the hallway. “What are you going to do with me? I did what you asked! I knew you wouldn’t keep your promise, Seth.” She screamed as they took her away, “I knew it!”

  “I never promise anything,” Seth said loud enough for Jezebel to hear. The statement was followed by a chuckle.

  Wes could still hear Jezebel as she was dragged away. “He’ll lie to all of you too!” she yelled at the soldiers carrying her. “You’ll be killed when he’s gotten what he wants from you.” She persisted until her voice could no longer be heard.

  Looking straight at Wes, Seth continued. “She’s going to be thrown into our cremator.” Seth studied Wes’s face for a reaction. Wes didn’t provide one. “However, you, Wesley, are very special. You’ve been a thorn in my side for some time now, and so I’m going to break my “no promises” policy just for you. First, I promise that I’m going to turn your brother into a Mortui while you watch.” He paused and laughed. “Then I promise that your fellow AfterLifers will be thrown into the cremator as well.” He stepped closer to Wes. “Finally, I promise to sync with you and sever you. I do hope you enjoy your evening with us, I will.” He stepped into the room where Doc was getting up off the floor. The dart had finally lost its charge. “Bring Wes in here, gentlemen,” Seth said to the soldiers holding him. “You can wake up his brother now too, Doc, I’m ready to initiate our newest member.”

  Doc nodded, approached Wes’s brother, and injected a syringe full of clear liquid into the IV. In a few minutes Lyall began showing signs of consciousness.

  “He’s not yours to take, Seth.” Wes battled to free himself from the soldiers who were restraining him.

  “I beg to differ.” Seth chuckled again and pointed to Lyall strapped to the table, “Looks to me as if he is.”

  “He’s ready, Seth,” Doc said.

  “Good. Now Wes, make sure you’re watching this. I would hate for you to miss any of tonight’s events.” Seth approached Lyall on the table and leaned over him.

  “No!” Wes lunged forward trying to free himself. His actions almost caused his captors to release their hold, but they recovered quickly and pulled him back. He didn’t want to watch.

  Holding Lyall’s still -heavy eyelids open, Seth looked into Lyall’s eyes only for a moment before standing up again. He wasn’t happy. “I can’t sync with him, Doc. Make sure he’s conscious. I’ll be back.”

  Seth turned toward Wes, clearly irritated. “Well, Wes, change of plans. Flexibility is an important quality in a leader, as I’m sure you know, and it appears circumstances have intervened. Though your associates are busy upstairs, I don’t want to wait for Lyall to be ready for me. Unfortunately, you will have to miss the fun of watching the elimination of your friends and the end of your brother’s life. Be assured though, each event will occur as promised. You, however, now get to go first in the order of things. I’ll make you another promise. It will be quite
entertaining.” He then stepped out of the room. “Bring him to the other side of the hall, I’m going to get rid of him now,” Seth said to the two soldiers still holding Wes. “It’s probably better to just sever you, Wes, and not worry about you possibly getting away from us again.” For all the emotion in his voice, Seth could be talking about going out to dinner with friends. Wes decided Seth had very few of those.

  Wes was dragged to a room on the opposite side of the hallway. It looked like a mirror image of the room where his brother was being held captive. They passed Meri in the hallway, she was still being held down on the floor by a few soldiers. She didn’t attempt to move as they passed. Once inside the room, they were joined by a third soldier. “Well Wes,” Seth said, “any last words?”

  Chapter 27

  Wes was pushed down so his back was on the floor. His earpiece fell out, disconnecting him from the rest of the group. Two Atumra soldiers held him down while the third held his eyes open. These Mortuis were stronger than the policemen he’d fought with the night he died. The pressure on his limbs was greater than anything an antemort could achieve and Wes was no match for them. He continued to struggle, possibly overdoing it, as Meri had told him. Play the game, he thought.

  “Keep him steady,” Seth said, stepping over Wes and placing one foot on either side of him. “Blake, when I’ve synced with him, make sure to watch until he’s severed. Once I’ve synced, I can take care of him. You two,” Seth said, motioning his head toward the two men holding him down, “I need you to go help finish off the other AfterLifers.” The two men nodded. Seth knelt on Wes’s chest, a smirk on his face, his eyes wide. “No, no, Wes, don’t struggle. This is your fate. When we sync, I will sever you and you will cease to exist.”

  Seth leaned down, placing his hands on Wes’s head while the soldier called Blake continued to hold his eyes open. Seth and Wes linked eyes and Wes could feel himself being pulled into a soul-sync with the man who intended to kill him. Seth’s pupils expanded, dragging Wes into the nothingness that existed between their minds. It was a strong pull and Wes concentrated on trying to prevent the sync but without success. He was pulled out of his body in the same way he had been when he’d experienced his first sync with Emily months before. Even now that he knew how to control his syncing abilities, he couldn’t prevent Seth from connecting their minds.

  He was in the very situation Ken had warned him of. He was in a connection with an unfriendly Mortui. Now his very existence depended on how strong his mind was and how much influence he could wield inside this connection with Seth. He knew if he was killed in this sync his mind would be severed and his time as a Mortui would be finished.

  He needed to think quickly and knew it was imperative to stay focused. However, as Seth’s mind started forming the images of a stone building, Wes discovered he couldn’t concentrate enough to counter what was materializing around him. The building’s shape started to form from the nothingness with its large arches and circular shape. Wes immediately knew where Seth had taken them. It was the Roman Coliseum constructed to look as it might have thousands of years before while still in its prime. The sun radiated down from directly overhead, reflecting off the stone and marble that surrounded them. Seth’s attire didn’t match the surroundings, but instead he wore a pair of jeans and a red t-shirt. It was simple attire for a match he no doubt thought would be quick and easy.

  Wes lay on the gravel and dirt that made up the floor of the Coliseum. Seth stood over him with his foot on his chest. Wes knew he was already at a disadvantage and began looking around to plan a way to survive. He wouldn’t be able to fight Seth on these terms. He had training, yes, but his small amount of preparation was no match for Seth’s years of experience. Wes was sure of that. That left few options for survival in a world built in Seth’s mind.

  “Epic battles were once fought here, so it is only fitting that you should die here as well. You may have special ‘abilities,’” he sneered, “but it’s useless to try to escape. I’m very good at what I do.” Seth’s face held an expression of pleasure. His eyes scanned the surrounding structure and Wes wondered how long he had worked to create the arena. Was he the first Mortui Seth had brought here, or just one of many? Seth finished scanning the rows and rows of stone steps and benches. “What we really need are spectators. It might be fun to have an audience witness your defeat.”

  Slowly the stone benches filled with people. They shared Seth’s simple attire, and rather than rows of Romans in togas, they appeared as modern spectators in a sporting arena. With their appearance came the noise that accompanies a cheering crowd. Seth closed his eyes and took in the noise as his smile widened. It was obvious he was enjoying the attention, even though it was from people of his own creation. “I want you to appreciate how very talented I am. Look at this whole world of people I have created just to watch you die.” He gestured expansively.

  Well, that answered one question. Seth’s temporary bout of narcissism provided Wes the opportunity he was waiting for. Rolling out from under Seth’s foot, he sprang to his feet and began running toward one side of the arena. After sprinting for a few seconds he realized he wasn’t being followed. Seth remained where Wes had left him. The crowd grew silent. Wes suddenly realized he didn’t have anywhere to run. There were no exits around the edge of the arena’s large circular floor.

  Wes’s thoughts were scattered and his mind still wasn’t as focused as it should be. Now that he wasn’t under Seth’s boot he needed this brief opportunity to arrange his thoughts. The world he was in was not of his creation, yet he knew he could control it. He could do it while being synced with others. Even in this world, Wes was just as capable of producing objects, people, and places that Seth could see and would have to respond to. He looked quickly at his surroundings. How could he use this place against Seth?

  A pain suddenly radiated though Wes’s body and he screamed in agony as he found himself once again on the arena’s floor. There was a flash of white light and the image of the Coliseum disappeared and then instantly reappeared. The onlooking spectators cheered. It was impossible for Seth to have gotten close enough to stab him, but in this world of Seth’s making, Wes was now sprawled on the ground with a knife protruding from his back and Seth standing over him. Pain from the wound pulsed through his body. Seth put his foot on Wes’s back and pulled out the knife. The pain subsided.

  “I already told you Wes, this is your fate. You will die here.” Seth jabbed the knife in Wes’s back a second time. “Let’s try to make it last a little longer though, shall we?”

  Wes screeched in pain. There was another bright flash of light as he lost contact with the reality of the Coliseum. This flash was slightly different than the previous one. It happened very quickly, but he was positive he had caught a brief glimpse of the room his body was in; the room where Seth pulled him into sync. He had seen Blake was the only Atumra soldier left in the room and was sitting on the metal hospital table swinging his feet back and forth. Seth lay next to him on the floor. During this brief escape from the Coliseum, the pain had also vanished. Then the image of the room disappeared as rapidly as it had come, and Wes was back in the Coliseum pain and all.

  The pain subsided as Seth withdrew the knife a second time and Wes was able to think clearly again. What just happened? Had the pain pulled him from the sync, or had his mind found a way to counter the pain brought on by the knife? More importantly, could he control it without pain? Seth stood above him gloating while Wes tried to process this new discovery. It was an interesting development that now offered him two weapons. First, he knew he could control things in this environment. Just because he hadn’t yet didn’t mean that he couldn’t, although it was a safe bet Seth didn’t think he could. Second, he’d just discovered he could exist in both the world created by the mind and the real world simultaneously.

  When Seth stabbed him, part of his mind had returned to the room in the basement of the Atumra headquarters. He didn’t question that it happened; he
knew it did. At the same time, he must also have remained in sync or Seth would have known he was gone. He wouldn’t have been able to withdraw the knife if Wes wasn’t there to pull the knife from. The only question now was whether or not he could divide his mind and maintain control of both his body in the real world and himself in the world of the mind. It was worth a shot. If he could exist in both places, he could take care of the Mortui named Blake and then hold Seth’s body ransom against him. It sounded crazy even to him, but it was a brilliant idea – if he could pull it off.

  “You can’t fight me, you know.” Seth was saying. “I’ve bested more experienced men than you.” As Seth prepared to stab him again, the new plan gave Wes renewed motivation. He saw Seth’s knife as just a piece of straw, and as Seth jabbed it at him he rolled away, jumped up, and ran. He wouldn’t be able to defend himself against Seth in the Coliseum while he fought Blake in the real world. If he was going keep Seth occupied, then he had to be somewhere he knew better than anyplace else. He needed to be in his theme park.

  Wes concentrated on the stone structure and the hordes of shouting people. They needed to disappear and be replaced with the fiberglass and concrete facades of his creation. He focused on a point at the side of the arena he was running toward and instead imagined he was running down Main Street U.S.A. toward Cinderella’s Castle. Seth’s world melted around him and was replaced by turn-of-the-twentieth-century facades that began to shift into place. First, an old movie theatre with its chasing lights came into focus, followed by a bakery, and then an ice cream shop. Wes continued until he came to the courtyard in front of the castle. He swiveled to see what had become of Seth. Now just a small figure, Seth remained standing at the bottom of Main Street as if he didn’t know what to do or where to go. They were now in Wes’s world and there was no way Seth would be able to change it back. Wes wouldn’t let that happen.