Rage

by Matthew Costello

“Resistance? Dan Hagar mentioned that some people were against the Authority. But he didn’t say anything about-”

  “Good. Best people like him not know too much or tell too much. They might leave him alone, and his settlement. The Authority needs the settlements. For supplies, to keep people in check. But there is a resistance; there are people who fight back.”

  Kvasir gestured at the open spaces of the Wasteland that lay before them.

  “They have a ‘vision,’ too. Free people. Sharing the science, all the goods from the past. Sharing what was found after Apophis. Instead of it all going to Capital Prime.” He took a breath. “That’s where I think you belong, my friend. With the Resistance.”

  For a few moments Raine didn’t say anything. “I was sent here on orders. You know. A mission.”

  “Yeah. To protect people. The survivors. Right?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then that’s how the hell you’ll do it, friend.”

  Another pause. Raine felt that this strange world just grew a bit stranger… and even more dangerous.

  “I guess I could talk to them.”

  Kvasir raised an arm.

  “Look. See over on that hill there? Some muties. Just about dusk they gather. Always want to get here. But my little traps on the bridge stop them.” Another spit at the rock. The gesture belied the confidence of Kvasir’s words. He took a breath.

  “Fuck you!” he yelled at them.

  “How do I find them. This Resistance?”

  Kvasir turned back to Raine. He reached out and gave his arm a squeeze exactly where the arm had been wounded. No pain.

  Incredible.

  But frightening now, too, since Raine knew the nanotrites were like time bombs ready to explode his humanity.

  “Your arm’s good. You can travel. But not to Wellspring. No. You’re going to another city, my friend. Best you give the Resistance a reason to want to contact you. A reason to trust you. Time for the last secret.”

  Kvasir stood up and headed for the door. The light and color was seeping from the sky.

  “Let me show you something…”

  Kvasir spread out a large roll of paper. Like an architect’s blueprint, it showed buildings, streets, a city plan.

  “This is the Dead City. The Authority used their scientists to carry out experiments-on the nanotrites, on the mutants themselves-while also trying to understand this…” He put his hand on the piece of asteroid, the feltrite. “There are secrets in here, and they’re not even close to understanding them.”

  “Who’s there now?” Raine said, pointing at the layout.

  “No one. Dead, you know? Things started to go wrong. Things went so bad in the city.” Kvasir grinned. “The mutants escaped. They don’t know how that happened.” He snorted again. “I do, though.”

  Raine looked at the old man’s grin.

  “Wait-you did it, you worked for them?”

  “Not in the end. I escaped. And I messed up things for them before I left. That’s another story. For another time, hm?” He paused. “I didn’t tell them what my suspicions were. Where they should be researching. Here, I’m just a crazy old man in the wilderness. They leave me alone. Occasional Enforcers will drop by once in a while to see if I have found anything. I give them crumbs. They leave me alone.”

  “And this city is…”

  “Deserted. Abandoned, save for the mutants. A half day’s journey from here. A city of mutants, my friend. And not just like the ones outside. The Authority carried out experiments. Those ‘experiments’ still walk around.”

  “I’m guessing you’re showing this to me for a reason.”

  “What were they trying to do? I never found that out. And what are they doing now? What was the Authority’s ultimate goal in experimenting with mutants? Whatever they were, they’ve taken those experiments into Capital Prime. But they started here, in this city. The clues are here.”

  Raine looked at the layout, the streets, the buildings.

  “Raine-what they were doing there, it got out of hand in a hurry. Bad enough for them to run without even packing up. Bad enough to not want to go back. They took their main hard drives and left, the city swarming with mutants. The experiments… out of control.”

  Kvasir gestured at the city plan.

  “Mutants… all over. So-some of the backup drives got left behind. It was just backup data. Not too important for them. But with that information, the Resistance might have something it could use to grow stronger. It could have-the truth.”

  “So why don’t they go there, get the damn drives-”

  “Not a chance they could get close. To expose themselves there-the Authority could find them. People speak. But you-” Kvasir jabbed a finger at Raine. “Who knows you? No one yet.”

  Kvasir walked over to a tray, his pieces of the killer asteroid sitting harmlessly in it.

  “You go there. Get the drives. Then, you go to Wellspring. I will let my contacts know you will be coming. There’s a woman. I used to work with her. If she’s interested, don’t worry-she’ll find you. It’s the only way it can work.”

  Kvasir picked up his scalpels and scraped at the rock. “Something here,” he muttered, not really talking to Raine. “Some kind of force. Subatomic. Chemical. A new kind of force. If only I had better equipment.”

  “And the mutants?” Raine prompted. “You said they are still in the Dead City.”

  Kvasir didn’t look up. “Yeah. It won’t be easy.” A snort. “No. It will be hard. Deadly. But you are trained. Hell, after what I’ve seen you can do, it might actually be possible. Sometimes one man is better suited for a mission than a whole army.” He shook his head. “Either way, it’s safer than the stadium-”

  “You mean the races.”

  Another scrape. “Death traps, they are. A stranger trying to make his way in the Wellspring? Drive, kill, or be killed.”

  Raine stood still, the repetitive scraping of Kvasir signaling the time passing.

  Options.

  What options?

  He could just ignore him, this crazy old scientist. Could just go to Wellspring.

  But then… if he were to do what he was sent here to do-if he were to carry out the mission, his duty- that wasn’t the answer.

  After what seemed like long minutes of silence, Raine spoke. “Okay, Kvasir. I’ll go get the drive. Or try. I’ll bring it here, and then I’ll go to the city.”

  Kvasir nodded. “Good. I will let them know. And Raine?” He looked up at the survivor. “I do have a few other weapons, things that might be useful. You can take what you want.”

  Raine nodded but said nothing. Instead, he watched Kvasir take a flake of rock and slide it under the microscope.

  “Yes… something… here…”

  Raine went back to the schematics for the Dead City.

  He spent the next hours looking at them, preparing… before he finally rolled them up, carried them to his cot, and lay down.

  TWENTY-FIVE

  THE ENFORCERS VISIT

  The commander, his helmet off, took steps forward. With armored gloves covering his hands, he whipped the back of one across Dan Hagar’s face, sending him flying to the floor.

  Two Enforcers-their protective face masks covering their faces, making them look more like robots than men-stood to the side, each one locked on an arm of Loosum, holding her tight.

  Dan saw his daughter pull against the grip of the two Enforcers.

  “Bastard,” she spat.

  “Loosum!” Dan said.

  “The Visionary cautions against such disrespect of his emissaries. The rules of the Authority, in fact, make it a crime.”

  His daughter-always a quick temper.

  And this commander, someone of rank, his face marked by scars. Someone who had seen a lot of fighting, whether with mutants, bandits, or settlers.

  Someone who knew exactly what he was doing.

  “Get up.”

  Dan stood up.

  “Now-I will ask you aga
in. The survivor. Where is he?”

  Halek stood to the side, cringing. Dan knew if he had any hope of coming out of this, it would depend on Halek keeping his damn mouth shut.

  “I told you. He was sent to the Outriggers and-”

  The commander’s hand went up. “Yes, same story. You dealt him for supplies. Yet-somehow he escaped. Resourceful, wouldn’t you say?”

  “He’s military. Trained.”

  “We’ll see how trained he is. When we find him. But that’s the future. Let’s focus on the past a little while longer.” The commander started walking around the weapons shop, picking up odd pieces, looking at gun bores, stocks, bullet chambers. He stopped and turned. “So after he escaped… he came back here, yes?”

  Dan shook his head. “Of course not! Why would he do that? If he escaped, if he knew we tried to deal him for the supplies we needed? Makes no sense.”

  The commander walked over to Loosum. “You know, the Authority can always use new blood. Smart people, male, female, who know how to live out here. Who know the ways of the bandits, the settlers.” He raised a hand to Loosum’s cheek. Gave it a caress.

  She whipped her head back.

  “And as you know, the Authority doesn’t have to ask for volunteers. We take them.” He took a deep breath. “All for the good of the people.”

  Dan’s eyes had locked on Loosum’s. She didn’t look scared. But she did look ready to explode. The wrong move, the wrong words, and she could get both of them in trouble.

  “You there. In the shadows. Come here, into the light.”

  Halek came forward, his face showing his fear.

  “Tell me about this… ‘deal.’ ”

  “This deal. Yes, it was… medical help for a survivor. That is what the Outriggers sent to us.”

  “The deal went wrong?”

  Dan watched Halek nod, lick his lips. So damn nervous. “Y-Yes… Commander.”

  “Look,” Dan said, “my brother-”

  The commander removed a control stick from his side, and smashed it into Dan’s midsection, doubling him up. The blow left Dan gasping, looking down at the ground, trying to get air into his lungs.

  “You will wait for questions,” the commander said nonchalantly. “Next time, I’ll turn this on.” He directed his attention back to Halek. “Where do you think the survivor, this Raine, is?”

  Dan looked at Halek, his brother’s eyes darting back and forth. If anyone looked like they were ready to lie, it was Halek.

  Finally, Dan caught Halek’s eyes. Trying to project the message:

  Shut the hell up.

  “I-I, er, don’t really know. N-Not here. Of course not here-”

  Said too damn fast.

  The commander nodded. “Really. Then-where?”

  “To Wellspring. The city. Has to be there.”

  “Hasn’t shown up yet. Least as far as we can tell. Though with all the human cattle who come into the city, he could easily disappear. But sooner or later, everyone gets found.”

  An Enforcer came up and whispered something in the commander’s ear.

  He paused and turned back to Dan. “Oh, good news. A real prize has just been captured. A much bigger fish. I’m afraid… we’ll have to go.”

  Maybe we’re off the hook, thought Dan.

  “These settlements. You know, the Visionary tolerates them, as long as they are of use to the Authority and Capital Prime. That tolerance can end, Hagar. I’m sure you haven’t told me everything.”

  “We have,” Dan said.

  The commander dismissed that with a wave of his hand. “So here’s what we are going to do, in case the survivor comes here. Just in case this Raine shows up in your settlement… or you hear about him.” He leaned down, getting right in Dan’s face. “Or you get any damn information at all. A bit of encouragement for you to come forward and do your duty.”

  He turned to the two Enforcers holding Loosum.

  “Take her.”

  “No!”

  Two other Enforcers by the door, their guns ready, came and stood by the commander.

  “It’s called the Authority for a reason, Dan-no matter what you think out here, we’re in control. The sooner you grasp that, the sooner you can see this pretty young girl. You might even want to do some digging yourself. Until that time… your daughter will be a guest in Capital Prime.”

  “Sick bastards,” Loosum said as she was dragged away.

  The Capital, Dan knew, was usually a one-way destination. Ostensibly anyone who went into its prison never came out. What did they do with the inmates? Kill them? Let them rot? Use them for experiments?

  “Don’t,” Dan said. “Please. We’ve cooperated-”

  He could still hear his daughter yelling as they dragged her into one of the Predators waiting outside. Just the appearance of the armored vehicles had been enough to clear the streets of the settlement when they arrived earlier that day.

  One of the armed vehicles could obliterate the settlement in minutes.

  “Listen to me, Hagar. Your daughter will be safe. My word, and the word of the Visionary. Just remember your part of the deal… let us know anything you hear about this survivor.”

  “And if I hear nothing?”

  The commander looked at the two faceless Enforcers, signaling them that it was time to leave. “Let’s just hope that somehow-for her sake-you do hear something.”

  The commander reattached his control stick to the side of his uniform. He put on his own helmet, shaped like an Enforcer’s protective face mask, but with silvery insignia to indicate his status.

  “I look forward to your news of the survivor.”

  The commander turned and walked out of the shop.

  The Enforcers stood a second longer, the necessary moments until they knew their officer was in the Predator. Then they, too, turned and left.

  When the two Authority vehicles pulled away, roaring out of the settlement like avenging animals, Dan sat down. Loosum taken away, a price set for her freedom.

  And Dan kept thinking, wondering… what was he going to do?

  For now, he didn’t know at all.

  TWENTY-SIX

  INSIDE THE DEAD CITY

  When Raine left, loaded with a box of small incendiaries that Kvasir had bartered from someone, he looked back and watched the old man study his progress across the bridge.

  The early light colored the hills in brilliant morning shades of yellow, orange, and-in the rocky shadows-a deep purple.

  Kvasir had shown him on the drawings the main Dead City building used by the Authority for its experiments, which was once a hospital.

  He had also warned him about what he would face.

  “Muties. God. Lots of them. Hiding. Waiting. People still try to get into the city to get things. Most don’t get out.”

  Then about the things that were there that Kvasir knew nothing about.

  “What they did after I escaped-the experiments; what’s there now -I can’t tell you.”

  So, as Raine drove, he couldn’t even imagine what lay ahead.

  And there was nothing he could do about that.

  The journey was free of any bandit or mutant attacks.

  Almost too free, Raine thought. He spotted a few burned-out vehicles, buggies that maybe had been attacked on their way to the Dead City. As he passed one, he saw the charred skeleton of its driver, still grimly holding onto the wheel. All black bone, flesh long gone.

  The flesh. Just burnt away or stripped away? Raine wondered.

  He came to what remained of a highway. For a while he tried to drive on the road, but the cracks and jumbled sheets of upturned pavement made it worse than the rocky desert floor, and he quickly got off it.

  It had barely looked like a highway anyway.

  Kvasir had said it would be about a half day’s journey. Raine wanted to get there fast, hopefully returning to the old man’s before dark.

  Then on to Wellspring.

  And is that what I should be doing? He had
been sent here with a mission. Did that mission now include joining the Resistance?

  He remembered reading by flashlight in a cave in Tora Bora. A history of the French Resistance. How Le Resistance might have done little to deter the Nazi’s plans. And worse-it made life hell for the people of France. A hundred people executed for any Nazi or Petainiste killed.

  Heavy price to fight back.

  Raine’s philosophy was that, in a war or a battle, you best have a chance of winning. Otherwise the struggle and the loss of life just wasn’t worth it.

  So he told himself, at that moment, he’d decide where he stood-and what he’d do-when the time came.

  The broken road by his side, even more gaping pieces without any pavement, curved right. He followed alongside it.

  And then-around a small hill, just ahead-he saw a city.

  Raine tried to match what he now saw and what he had studied on the charts. A few towering buildings had obviously been broken in half, like branches stuck in the ground during a hurricane and roughly snapped in two.

  He saw a few glimmers of reflected light, windows that still had glass. But most of the buildings had dark, gaping holes. Other buildings missed a wall or had no top. It looked as if some force had pried the roofs off like the pull tabs on a can.

  The hospital, he thought. Near the center of the devastated city. He’d have to go deep into this destroyed city, the Dead City, to get there.

  Did they use this place because it was well away from the cities and settlements… so they could keep their work secret?

  Or was what they were doing so dangerous that this “dead city” was the only place they could do it? Suddenly he wished he had a convoy with him. A few squadrons of well-armed grunts following in his tracks. Because-sitting here in his buggy, a few sidearms and grenades his entire arsenal-it seemed absolutely insane to be going into the place alone.

  He went slowly.

  Crevasses mixed with chunks of broken street. Towering buildings had fallen across what were once avenues, forcing him to stop, turn around, and find another way forward.

  Once, he nearly drove over what looked like merely another oversized pothole but in fact turned out to be an opening that could have eaten his buggy, a giant pit sliding down to… what?