Forgotten (The Forgotten Book 1)

by M. R. Forbes

  “Sarah, follow me,” Hayden said.

  “Sheriff?” she replied. “I can’t do it.”

  “Yes, you can. I’m an old man, and I can do it. Watch.”

  He backed up a few steps and ran toward the edge. He pushed off as he reached it, his legs screaming as he found himself in the air, flying 60 meters off the deck. His body began to slow, the rooftop of Block Twenty-one drawing near.

  He hit the other side a half-meter in, tucking his shoulder and rolling on it to his feet, careful not to drop Baby. He faced Block Twenty-two, waving to them.

  “It’s easy. Come on.”

  Emboldened by his jump, Sarah backed up and charged forward, making the leap. He caught her as she landed, keeping her from taking the same tumble he had. Jonas followed right after, and Hayden caught him, too.

  Their success signaled the rest of the residents to follow, lining up along the rooftop to leap. The first round turned to help the others, catching them as they came in.

  Then Hayden heard a scream, and a thud as the first of them missed the jump. Someone on his side cried out and started to sob. The pace of the crossing slowed. But the flames were rising higher, and the smoke was getting thicker. Emergency systems triggered the elemental generators to start dumping massive amounts of water like a giant sprinkler. They were all drenched within seconds, but it wasn’t enough to kill the progression. The flames emerged from the stairwell at the remaining residents’ backs.

  “Come on,” Hayden shouted. “You can make it. Come on.”

  The others followed his lead, shouting across, holding out their arms to beckon the remaining people to make the leap.

  Hayden heard another scream. Then another.

  Only they didn’t come from in front of him.

  He spun around, looking for the source. He saw the two bodies on the ground first, blood pouring from their necks. His eyes shifted upward, into the darkness of the creature standing on the opposite side of the rooftop.

  His left hand gripped the sheath of his newly acquired blade. His right hand took the handle. The demon seemed to recognize him as the one who had shot it. It ignored the others, lowering itself and charging.

  He slipped the blade from its case, holding it in front of him.

  “Come on then, you son of a bitch,” he said.

  23

  The demon rushed toward him, small feet slapping hard on the rooftop, claws scratching against the surface. It held its arms out wide, flexing the claws there, which were still dripping with its other victims’ blood.

  Hayden was getting a better look at it now. It was almost as tall as he was but much thinner, its body composed of a narrow musculature with thin muscle and dark, leathery flesh resting on top. It had a smallish head, tiny black eyes, and a snout filled with rows of sharp teeth. It wasn’t clear how intelligent the thing was, charging right at him while he held the blade, but it was apparent it knew who he was and that it was pissed at him.

  He waited for it, crouching slightly as it approached. Its mouth opened, but it didn’t make a sound, coming at him in silence. When it was four meters away, it jumped, leaving the ground and arcing toward him, its speed increasing from the maneuver.

  The people around him were screaming in terror. He didn’t budge, holding Baby tight and judging the creature’s speed.

  He swung the weapon, sweeping it in an uppercut across his body as the demon came in. The weapon caught it in the shoulder, the force knocking it aside as the blade dug into its flesh. It hissed as black blood splattered from the wound, sliding sideways, using its claws to stop its momentum and turn back in his direction. It dove at him before he could recover, slashing up at his neck.

  He threw himself backward, the daggers passing close enough that he could smell the blood on its fingertips. He put himself off-balance, stumbling away as the creature pounced again.

  He raised the blade, catching its claws on the flat more by accident and luck than anything else. The creature’s weight against it pushed him back more, and he fell to the ground, Baby dropping from his hand.

  It hissed a second time, opening its jaw wide as it loomed over him, lifting a foot toward his chest.

  Hayden heard a grunt, and the demon made another hissing sound, twisting back. Gary’s poker was sticking out of its back, buried twelve centimeters deep. Hayden saw past the thing to where Sarah stood, frozen after delivering the blow.

  He reached out for Baby, finding the grip and picking it up, swinging it toward the demon. It hopped away before he could hit it, powerful legs carrying it to Sarah. She barely had time to scream as the creature’s claws whipped across her neck, cutting deep into her throat. She fell to her knees, clutching at the wound while her life bled out in front of him.

  He got to his feet, lunging at the demon. It knew he was coming and it spun back, slashing Baby and bringing it toward the ground with one hand, slashing at him with the other. He ducked low, feeling the air as the claws went over his head. He pulled his stunner from his pants at the same time, bringing it up and sticking it in the monster’s open mouth.

  “Resist this,” he said, pulling the trigger.

  The final charged round sank into the demon’s mouth, lighting up its insides. The electric burst passed over to Hayden, sending a jolt through his system and knocking him away.

  He stayed down, trying to regain his senses. The shouts had died out, replaced with sobbing and murmurs. Two meters away, Block Twenty-two was completely engulfed, the entire structure going up in flame.

  His body was numb, and the parts that weren’t numb were burning from fresh exhaustion. Sarah. He had seen the wound before she collapsed.

  He knew she wasn’t going to get up again. He let out a soft sigh of anguish. She was too damn young. She was just starting to understand her worth. Damn it.

  He moved slowly, gathering his arms and legs. Everything was tingling. A pair of shoes stopped ahead of his face. He looked up. Gary was standing over him.

  Hayden didn’t know if the big man was going to help him up or take Baby and leave. He got his answer a moment later when Gary reached past him, picking up the blade.

  “Hector didn’t make the jump,” Gary said. “This is mine now.”

  “I need it,” Hayden said.

  “Go fezz yourself,” Gary said.

  Hayden watched him turn and move for the stairwell. He noticed the demon was still on the rooftop, laying face down. A few of the residents were standing over it, examining it with fear in their eyes.

  A larger group moved to intercept Gary, blocking his path.

  “What do you think you’re doing?” Jonas said, leading the group.

  “This is mine. I’m taking it.”

  “No, you aren’t. The Sheriff wants it.”

  “I don’t give a shit about the Sheriff. He got Hector killed.”

  “He saved the life of everyone on this rooftop. That’s more than anyone else would have done.”

  “Get out of my way,” Gary insisted.

  “Hand it over, and we will.”

  Gary considered them for a moment. Then he dropped Baby on the rooftop. “I don’t need it anyway.”

  Hayden struggled to his feet, looking over at the burning building. The fire was beginning to die out, the combination of water and lack of fuel starting to win the fight. If they followed procedure, Engineering would be there any minute now, if they weren’t there already. He had read the report on the Block Eight fire. He knew what the outcome would be. A reduction in population for starters. Tighter rationing, stricter controls.

  What about the outcome of killing a monster in the city?

  Hayden limped slowly to where Sarah's body was resting. He knelt beside her, forcing himself to look at her lifeless face. She had died to protect him. He wasn't going to let her courage be for nothing.

  He returned to his feet, putting his attention back on the creature, approaching it slowly. A few of the residents filed in behind him as if he could protect them if it decided
to get up again. Even if he had been holding the blade, he wasn’t sure he had the strength.

  He looked down at it. He nudged it with his foot. It was surprisingly light. He turned it over, hearing the gasps as its face became visible once more. Its eyes were open, staring up at the membrane not far above them. He was disgusted by it all over again. It was a real monster, a true demon.

  “What is that thing?” one of the residents said behind him.

  “Where did it come from?” another asked.

  He was tempted to tell them. So tempted. He could have destroyed all of Malcolm’s efforts in an instant. But what would the point of that be? These people had suffered enough already tonight. But how was he supposed to lie about it? What was he supposed to say it was?

  “We need to go, Sheriff,” Jonas said. “Law is on the splits, and they’ll be coming up here as soon as they figure out some of us jumped the gap.”

  He was holding Baby. Hayden stuck out his hand. Jonas hesitated a moment, and then passed the blade to him.

  He stood over the creature. He thought about what he was going to do for a few seconds. Then he raised the blade over his head, taking it in a two-hand grip. He knelt slightly, bringing it down on the demon’s neck and severing its head.

  The residents around him drew back. He bent down, grabbing the head by the sides and tucking it under his arm. Then he put his foot against the body, rolling it toward the edge.

  “What are you doing, Sheriff?” Jonas asked.

  “Destroying the evidence.”

  “Why?”

  “Because Metro doesn’t need this,” he replied. “We have enough monsters in this town already.”

  He kicked the headless corpse. It tumbled off the side, falling out far enough that it landed in the burning Block, vanishing in the smoke.

  “I’m going to Block Twenty to make my way down,” Hayden said. “Are you with me?”

  Jonas nodded. He looked like he wanted to cry. “My girlfriend was in there. She’s dead, isn’t she Sheriff? Fezz the turbs. Fezz this whole damn ship.”

  Hayden put his hand on Jonas’ shoulder. “I’m starting to feel the same way. But the turbs weren't responsible for the fire.”

  “They weren't?”

  “I don't think so. Look down there, Jonas. Where the hell is Engineering? Why isn't anyone doing anything to stop it, or to save anyone? Where is Law? Where is Medical? Where is Emergency Response?”

  Hayden was getting angrier with each observation. He couldn't believe it would go this far, this fast.

  “Do you really think-”

  Hayden turned to the few hundred residents who had made it across. He took a deep breath, preparing to shout. To tell them to stay quiet, and forget what they had seen.

  He didn't get the chance.

  A whirring sound rose from the split behind them, a plural buzzing off the edge of the Block.

  A moment later, a trio of drones appeared over the corner. They were two meters long and featured a pair of long cylinders reaching from either side of a short nose.

  Hayden had never seen drones like these before. They were larger than Law’s inoperable machines. Where had they come from?

  The twin cylinders on each began to belch fire.

  The people on the rooftop started to die.

  24

  “Move!” Hayden shouted, grabbing Jonas’ shoulder and pulling him away.

  The flashes from the front of the drones were constant, the rain of death overwhelming. Hayden had never seen anything like it. He had never heard of anything like it. Not from the PASS, not from the stories handed down by the older generations. These weapons weren’t firing stunner rounds. He didn’t know what they were firing, but they were murderous.

  The residents on the rooftop screamed, most of them trying to run for the stairwell door. One of the drones broke away from the others, circling the rooftop to cut them off. The people were caught in the crossfire, hit with something and knocked down or simply cut to pieces.

  Hayden put his eyes forward again. They were nearing the edge of the block and would have to make a second leap. Could the drones see him? Would they follow? He didn’t know. It didn’t matter. He had to escape.

  Malcolm had gone off the deep end. He was willing to slaughter every single one of the people on the rooftop to keep them from saying anything about the demon. Who was piloting the drones? Who was pulling the trigger? His deputies? He couldn’t believe they would be so cold and inhuman.

  He heard the whine of one of the drones closing in behind them, and the rhythmic thwap thwap thwap of the weapons it carried. The rooftop behind him began spitting up shards of synthcrete, raising a cloud of dust. He had Baby in his left hand, the demon head tucked beneath his arm, his right hand pulling Jonas along. He didn’t know if anyone else had run, or if they had made it from this Block to another.

  “Jump,” he shouted, letting Jonas go as they neared the edge.

  He pushed off, once more going airborne across the gap, passing over the strand below. He could see Jonas jump out of the corner of his eye.

  He hit the other side, his foot nearly sliding off the edge. He tumbled, losing the demon head as he rolled to a stop facing the ledge.

  Jonas landed more smoothly than him, his legs flexing slightly. He didn’t lose his footing, rushing forward to regain his balance. The drone wasn’t far behind.

  Hayden forced himself up. He rushed to the head, lifting it and joining Jonas in a sprint for the stairwell. He could still hear the other drones firing on the rooftop of Block Twenty-two, but there were no screams now. He risked a quick glance back. Not a single resident was left standing.

  The third drone took a wide route around the rooftop, clearly tracking them but not firing. They made it to the stairwell door, forced to come to a stop while Jonas entered the master code.

  The drone swooped around, dropping directly behind them. Hayden turned, staring at the front of it. He heard the door click behind him, and then Jonas turned, too.

  Why wasn’t it shooting?

  He didn’t wait to find out. He threw himself backward, through the door. Jonas didn’t hesitate to follow, and they charged into the stairwell, tripping on the steps and falling to the sixteenth floor. An instant later the guns on the machine opened up, tearing the stairwell door to pieces and dropping fragments of synthcrete on top of them.

  “Get up,” Hayden said, to himself as much as Jonas.

  It was easier said than done. He didn’t want to get up. His body was done. His mind was struggling to process everything it had witnessed. It had barely been ten hours since he had woken up beside Natalia, turned over and kissed her face before sliding out of bed and making his way to the shower. She had joined him there a few minutes later, washing his back as he washed hers. Holding her close in the warm afterglow of their evening together and the promise of a second chance to have a child of their own.

  It was gone. All gone. Natalia. The baby. His life would never be the same. Metro would never be the same.

  Or maybe it would. Maybe it would go on as it had been going on for almost four centuries. Maybe everything he had witnessed would die in the slow and steady progression of time.

  Covered up.

  Buried.

  Forgotten.

  He had read about the fire in Block Eight. The report said it was an accident. Was it?

  He got up, gathering himself. Jonas made it to his feet beside him. They started down the stairwell, one step at a time.

  “Sheriff, this-” Jonas’ voice trailed off. He was struggling to comprehend. To understand.

  “It’s not safe here,” Hayden said.

  Not for him. Not for Jonas. It never would be. Not ever again.

  Not unless he could figure out what had happened to the Pilgrim and somehow make it right.

  Not unless he could free the people of Metro from their prison in the massive hold, and give them safe and unfettered access to the rest of the ship.

  Not unless he cou
ld expose what the Governor had done to keep them quiet.

  “We need to get through the hatch,” Hayden said. “We have to get to the other side. It’s the only way we survive.”

  “There are monsters out there.”

  “There are monsters in here. Worse than these.” He held up the demon’s head.

  “I can’t open the hatch, Sheriff. I need a terminal and time.”

  “I’m not sure you need to crack it.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You theorized that the Governor might know the truth about the Pilgrim, or at least have access to information we don’t. If that’s true, we’ll find it in his Mansion.”

  Jonas froze. “You want to go to the Governor’s Mansion?”

  Hayden nodded. “We might be wrong. There might be nothing to find there. But I don’t think so.”

  “How are we going to get in?”

  “The Mansion’s access panel is on Metro’s network, isn’t it?”

  Jonas nodded.

  “And you have the master code, don’t you?”

  He nodded again.

  Hayden held Baby up in front of him. Some of the demon’s black blood had dried to the edge. He hoped he wouldn’t have to use it again, especially against his own deputies. But if he had to choose between going after Natalia and killing them?

  He was going to kill them.

  “You open the doors. I’ll worry about the rest.”

  25

  It was easier to get out of Block Twenty than Hayden expected.

  With the master code, it didn’t matter if the Governor ordered Engineering to cut off access to the lifts, which were functional here. Jonas simply overrode the lockout, opening the doors and carrying them to the bottom floor. If Law was in the building, they had been sent up the stairwell, not realizing that they were able to defeat the security protocols.

  The lift doors opened on the second floor of the Block. Hayden moved out first, scanning the area carefully before motioning Jonas to follow. They made their way down the corridor to the row of cubes adjacent to the strand that ran between Block Twenty and Block Nineteen. They were both soaking wet, dirty and scraped from their fall down the steps. Jonas had managed to hold onto his satchel, but he had said he was worried the computer inside had been damaged.