Manipulator

by Thom Parsons

  Owen hit the ground hard, followed just a microsecond later by Eli.

  And that was when the gunfire began to rain down.

  There was a relentless assault of bullets as all three Veridian agents concentrated fire on where Owen and Eli had taken cover. Behind them, glass windows shattered and wooden cabinet doors fell off their hinges as the bullets tore apart everything that they touched.

  The three men who had stormed the apartment were unforgiving in their attack. Owen felt like a sitting duck being trapped here without his weapon which he had stupidly left on the other side of the room. Eli had a pistol, but the shit-storm of bullets constantly tearing everything apart in their direction without pause prevented him from firing back.

  But right there and then, he didn't need to, because Nick was the one who fired the first few bullets in retaliation. For some unknown reason to him, the three Veridian agents who had entered Owen's apartment had seemingly concentrated all of their fire on where Owen and Eli had hidden behind the kitchen counter. Not one of them had even thought about aiming for Nick.

  Maybe they don't see me as a threat? He wondered. If they really do have access to the FBI's database, then maybe the three of them know that I don't usually carry a weapon. Maybe that's why they're targeting Owen first? Or maybe… Maybe they only came here to kill Owen? Either way, it's a good job Eli gave me this gun, isn't it?

  Popping out from behind his cover, Nick pulled the trigger of the pistol five times in quick succession, hitting one of the Veridian agents square in the side of the head and clipping a second man in the chest. But just one bullet wasn't going to stop him.

  Nick was more of a threat to them than Owen was now, and as soon as the two still-standing agents noticed where this new gunfire was coming from, that was where they concentrated their weapons. Nick ducked back into cover just in time to avoid getting penetrated by a storm of bullets. The wall which he hid behind splintered out as the bullets slammed continuously into it.

  On the other side of the room, Eli noticed that short lull in gunfire as the two men turned to switch targets. It's time! He said energetically to himself, pumping himself up for what he was about to do. Shoot now whilst they're distracted!

  The two Veridian agents made the fatal mistake of both turning their weapons to concentrate on Nick, instead of allocating one gunman to each target. This mistake will be their downfall. Eli thought to himself as he popped up bravely from behind the kitchen counter and unloaded the entire clip of his handgun in the direction of the attackers.

  Not every bullet struck Eli's intended targets, but there were enough well-placed shots in there for him to save the day. Both Veridian agents hit the ground, but that didn't stop Eli from continuing to pump bullets out of his weapon. In an adrenaline fuelled rage, he fired and fired until he heard the click click click of the empty trigger beneath his finger.

  The gun was spent, but that was okay, because he had completed exactly what he set out to do. There was no-one left standing. Eli breathed heavily in shock as he came back around to his senses, realising what he had just done. He put the gun down on the kitchen side as his hands began to shake from the shock of what had just happened. I think I'm going to be sick.

  And just as soon as the assault had begun, it was over.

  Cautiously, Owen moved out from behind the kitchen counter and stepped lightly into the main living room space of his apartment. The room that now lay before him was ruined beyond repair, with bullet holes lining every wall and ceiling space.

  A cold breeze ran through the large room from the shattered kitchen window behind him, causing some of the hairs on his arms to stand on end. As Owen crossed the living room, he grabbed his gun from the table, wary that there could be more men yet to attack them. He saw that minor blood splatter from the earlier firefight covered almost every surface. He crept forwards, carefully eyeing up the three agent's lifeless bodies as he passed them. Owen watched the blood slowly seep out from underneath them and onto the floor.

  Turning a corner anxiously, Archer moved towards the still-smashed-open front door to his apartment. He peeked slowly out into the main corridor beyond, mainly checking to see that the coast was clear. No more agents were to be found.

  "I think we're clear," Owen called out with a sigh of relief as he walked back into the main living room space, shocked once again by just how beaten up the place looked. Nick had come out of hiding, but his face was a picture of terror. He was clearly horrified by the experience in which he had just been through. He'd never been caught in the middle of a firefight before. This experience had shocked him to his core.

  "We're leaving," Owen said sternly, repeating his earlier statement to the group. There was no messing around this time. More importantly, there was no hesitancy this time. The three of them silently picked a task and stuck to it, grabbing everything that they were going to need. Nick began dismantling the PRoGRaM device, thankful that a stray bullet had hit it during the earlier assault, whilst Eli worked on gathering up all the electronics that they were going to need. "Anyone got any ideas on where we should go?" Owen called out from the kitchen as he began to throw an emergency bag of food and water together.

  "Can't go to mine," Eli spoke out as he finally got around to closing down Owen's laptop. "It’s not safe. Kate knew where I lived, and if she's working with Ethan and his boss at Veridian, she could lead them right to us."

  "No good going to mine either," Nick said quietly, still shell-shocked from the firefight. His ears were ringing out, but he wasn't willing to admit it to the others. "If Veridian are working with the FBI, they know exactly where to find me."

  "Shit," Owen replied as he emptied out some bottles so that he could fill them with tap water. All of their escape options were being whittled down rather fast.

  "We need to get off the grid," Eli said loudly as he gently placed Owen's personal laptop into a backpack. The decryption software was still running. Only a few more hours and we'll know exactly who we're dealing with. "Let's get on the road and get moving. We can use my car. I doubt anyone expected me to be alive, so Veridian won't actively be looking for me… not yet anyway. Not until Kate informs them of what's happened here."

  I'd almost forgot about Kate. She's the only one that managed to get away from this situation alive. Where is she? Eli thought, before he continued. "Once we put a little bit of distance between us and this place I can make a few calls. There are a few people out there who owe me favours. I'm sure I can find someone who can hook us up with somewhere to stay for a little while. At least until we can figure out what we're going to do about this whole situation."

  Owen, Nick and Eli finished grabbing everything that they needed in silence and together they all regrouped near the smashed front door to Owen's apartment. In a small pile on the floor between them, they had placed everything that they were going to need.

  "What about him?" Eli asked before they made a move to leave, pointing over to an unconscious Ethan Darkes on the floor of the living room.

  "I don't know," Owen said honestly. We should leave him here to die… But on the other hand. We might need him as a bargaining chip later. He's clearly an important part of Veridian's operation.

  "We should take him with us," Eli said, pretty much making the decision on Owen's behalf, yet cleverly hiding his ulterior motive. I need to know who placed that hit on me. And Ethan is my only lead…

  Owen and Nick looked over, but the two of them looked hugely unsure. Ethan was clearly a deadweight, and there was no way they'd be able to move him easily. "I'll carry him," Eli offered, seeing the hesitancy written all over their faces. Somehow, he sealed the deal, getting a quick nod from Owen in response.

  Between the three of them, they quickly reshuffled all of their equipment. Nick handled the two black duffel bags that held the PRoGRaM device, whilst Owen carried the backpack of supplies as well as the bag that contained his laptop. Eli grabbed Ethan without issue and threw him up over his shoulder. The man was clear
ly stronger than he looked, but without speaking about it further, the three of them left.

  Not one of them would ever return here again.

  Chapter Eighty Four

  Date: December 13th 2035

  Location: Owen’s Apartment, New York

  Anything less than a headshot wasn't fatal when it came to Veridian's field agents. The man took a sharp intake of breath as consciousness quickly returned to him. He blinked several times in quick succession, gradually bringing his vision back to normal from the excessive blurriness that he had woken to.

  He looked up at the plain ceiling above him from his face up position on the carpeted floor. At the edge of his line of sight, he watched mesmerisingly as a huge rotator fan slowly spun around on the ceiling. One of its blades was damaged and hanging off, dangling perilously and threatening to fall to the ground at any second.

  Carefully, he raised his hands and began to pat himself down all over in an attempt to pinpoint just where the pain was coming from. His hands felt heavy as he began to touch himself all over, before wincing massively as he tapped the centre of his torso. A bullet had hit him right in the middle of his chest, next to his heart and seemingly knocked him unconscious during the firefight. If it wasn't for this bulletproof vest…

  As he tilted his head, he noticed that the other two Veridian agents in the room weren't so lucky. Neither of them had survived the assault. The nearest agent to him was missing a piece of his skull. The result of a bullet to the eye.

  Nearby, a clocked ticked on and on, bringing an odd sense of normalcy to the distressing scene surrounding him. Everyone was long gone. You've failed. He said to himself as he realised the predicament that he was in. You didn't kill them. Owen Archer. Ethan Darkes. Now you've got to try and explain yourself…

  The Veridian agent slowly worked himself up to his feet and begrudgingly reached into a velcro pocket attached to his combat vest. He pulled out a small touchscreen mobile phone which was half shattered, but luckily the touchpad and camera on it were still capable of working without issue. After unlocking the device via a secure retinal scan, the agent speed dialled a number and brought the phone up to his ear.

  "Is it over?" the robotic voice of his boss asked him upon answering the call. For once they sounded flustered and nervous. For once, they sounded almost human.

  "We were ambushed," the Veridian agent said weakly into his phone as he stretched out his entire body. "Owen and his team were ready for us. They escaped after killing the other two agents and after knocking me unconscious. I'm the last one standing."

  "How long has it been since you lost them?" the boss asked accusingly, sounding as if they were finally back to their normal self.

  "I don't know," the man said as he looked at the corpses of his fellow agents. "It can't have been more than ten minutes. The police haven't arrived yet"

  "And they won't," the boss informed him. "Veridian have jurisdiction here. I'm sending another team to your location to assist with the clean up operation."

  "Do you want me to stay on site?"

  "Yes," the boss answered in their monotone synthetic voice.

  "What about the targets?" the Veridian agent asked, wondering what was going to happen with the situation regarding Ethan Darkes and Owen Archer.

  "We'll need to move to the secondary tracking device," the boss said, almost as if they had anticipated this outcome. "The one that I placed on Ethan Darkes."

  "Do you need me to leave the clean-up here for the other agents to deal with? I can follow Ethan and Owen."

  "Not necessary," the boss replied. "I'm going to deal with this one myself."

  Chapter Eighty Five

  Date: December 13th 2035

  Location: New York City Southern Outskirts

  "There's something I need to say," Nick mumbled as he turned to face Owen from the passenger seat. Almost ten minutes had passed without a single word exchanged between anybody in the vehicle.

  "What's up?" Owen asked casually without taking his eyes off the road.

  Nick let out a genuinely heartfelt sigh before speaking, setting the tone of the conversation before even opening his mouth. "I can't do this anymore Owen," he said quietly. "I can't get caught up in this. It's gone too far. Look at us! We're running, and people are actually trying to kill us now."

  "Nick. Don't do this," Owen pleaded, knowing exactly where his friend was taking this conversation. He glanced into the rear-view mirror, checking in on the passengers on the backseat. Eli was staring out the window yet obviously listening to their conversation, whilst Ethan was still spark out unconscious next to him.

  "I was okay with this at first, but this is getting dangerous now," Nick replied. "I'm going to hand myself in to Sterling."

  "But they'll kill you!" Owen said back to him a little too loudly, trying to emphasise the point. "Look at the facts, Nick. Veridian just tried to kill all of us in my apartment. If you turn yourself in, you're almost guaranteed to be walking into a death sentence!"

  "No I'm not Owen," Nick replied sternly. "Lets face it. They were only trying to kill us… because of you."

  "Me?! You think this is my fault?" Owen said, turning to face Nick, taking his eyes off the road for just a second to look into the man's eyes.

  "Of course I do!"

  And what's worse is that he means it too. Archer realised as he turned his head back to face the road. Something in Nick's eyes told Owen that he meant every word. He really does blame me. An awkward silence floated in the air between the two of them for a few minutes as neither man acknowledged the other. Nick had turned his head away to watch the nightlife of New York City pass him by on the other side of the glass.

  "It actually is my fault," Owen admitted, breaking the tension and causing Nick to look over at him. He needed to clear the air, to occupy the vehicle with any other sound than that of the rumble of the road passing beneath their car. "It's my fault that those agents came for us."

  "What do you mean?" Nick answered back, speaking surprisingly quietly. Owen had almost expected him to explode in anger, but the calm tone of voice he got in return shocked him slightly.

  "During the Prison System break-in, I took my mask off," Owen said, coming clean. If there's a time for Nick to be angry, then this is it.

  But he didn't answer straight away like Owen expected him to. He could feel his eyes, almost judging him from the passenger seat. Nick waited for a few seconds before replying. "Why didn't you tell me?" he asked.

  "I don't know," Owen admitted shamefully. There really is no excuse. Why didn't I tell him?

  "You took your mask off, they looked back at the memories of Alex Morgan, and then they found you," Nick said, piecing it all together immediately. He turned away to gaze out of the passenger side window, once again welcoming a realm of silence into the vehicle.

  "You know…" Nick said without turning around, sounding almost light-hearted. "It probably doesn't matter anyway. I'd bet that someone was going to come for us, even if you'd left your mask on in the Prison System. There's something more going on here. How do you explain those cameras in your apartment?"

  "True," Owen conceded. He still had no words to explain what was going on. Am I really the fourth person? He asked himself once again. I guess there's only one way to find out.

  “I’m going back in,” Owen stated quietly, speaking just loudly enough for everyone in the vehicle to hear him. The sound echoed out as no one replied. He began nodding to himself as he said the words once again, louder, and more confidently this time. “I’m going back in.”

  “Owen…” Nick whispered. “You can’t.”

  “The hell I can’t,” Owen replied, speaking at double the volume and sounding almost angry as he spoke.

  “Owen," Eli said from the back seat, speaking up for the first time in a long time. "Nick's serious. PRoGRaM’s affecting you. The entry and exit process is taking it’s toll. Next time, it could kill you…”

  Owen sighed before taking a deep breath ba
ck in. Time had finally begun to take its toll on him. He was a beaten man who had lost everything. His home. His job. A man who’d been to hell and back. But this man wasn't finished. Not yet.

  “One last time,” Owen said.

  “Are you sure-“ Nick began to reply.

  “Please Nick,” insisted Owen, cutting him off and sounding desperate. “I need you to do this with me. Please don't question me on this. Not now. Not after everything that’s brought us up to this point. One. Last. Time.”

  Nick didn’t argue back. "One last time," he answered. "And then I'm leaving to hand myself into Sterling. You know that I can't stay with you forever Owen. I don't want to be on the run."

  "I understand," Owen replied. "Thank you Nick." Archer knew that he couldn't force him to do anything against his will. The man had to do what the man had to do.

  “I’m coming with you,” Eli said to Owen, chipping into their conversation from the back. “If you’re going back in, then I'm coming with you.”

  Owen looked at Eli in the rear-view mirror. He was leaning forwards slightly now, trying to get in on the action. I am going to need some help…

  "Okay,” Archer answered with a nod a nod before turning his gaze to look at Nick. "Can we use The White Room again now?"

  "I have a backup version of the code somewhere," Nick replied, giving Owen the exact answer that he was looking for.

  “Eli," Owen called out his name, making the man lean forwards. "When we go back in, I want you to wear the Manipulator headset. This time, I want you to work on me. I need you to help me find out what’s going on.”

  "Deal," Eli replied. "But only if you let me talk to Ethan. I want to find out who ordered the hit on me."

  “That's fine," Owen said without care for what was going to happen to Ethan after this night was over. "And Eli? Thank you for coming back.”