Mutant City

by Steve Feasey

  And that would have been that, had it not been for Brick.

  The hulk of a man – whom Rush had expected to be of no use when danger finally reared its ugly head – moved with incredible speed, bellowing his own name like a battle cry. He dashed forward and grabbed hold of the long prehensile tongue about halfway between the creature and its intended prey. Using both hands and all his weight, he heaved downwards. There was a screech followed by a stifled gagging sound as the monster’s head was jerked down. The creature dropped on to all fours, causing Rush to lose his balance and his footing. He hit the stony ground hard, the air knocked out of his lungs by the impact.

  The little torch had dropped from Rush’s hand as he’d been attacked, and he prayed it had not broken, leaving his defender as blind as he now was. There was another terrifying shriek from the monster, and he felt the living noose around his neck first loosen, then fall away altogether. Still blind, he scrambled backwards, scraping his hands and elbows on the harsh, skittering stones. Somewhere off to his left he heard another strange sound, like rock being torn apart, swiftly followed by the noise of the creature moving quickly in the same direction. There was a meaty whump! like something hard and heavy being slammed into flesh, and a screech that told him the salamander-thing had been hurt.

  More scuffling sounds followed, rocks and stones scraping and rubbing against each other as if the two combatants were slowly circling each other, waiting for the right moment to attack. Then a sudden flurry of noise, during which Rush’s heart almost stopped when he heard Brick shout out in pain.

  ‘Brick? Brick, are you all right?’

  There was a grunt, followed by two more loud thumping sounds, like someone hitting a side of beef with a large hammer.

  ‘Brick!’ Rush called out. Helpless, he heard more grunts and groans. Something large, or perhaps two large things, crashed to the ground, and he imagined he felt the earth shake with the force of it. He held his breath, listening to the two combatants, who were clearly locked together in a deadly wrestling match only one of them would survive.

  He was about to call out again when, quite suddenly, the struggle stopped. The silence that followed, broken only by the plink! of water droplets hitting the surface of the lake, was terrifying.

  ‘Brick?’ Rush cried out into the darkness again. In his mind he imagined the huge black-and-orange creature making its way slowly towards him, toying with its sightless prey before it dealt the last, lethal blow.

  A noise close by made him whirl around, lashing out into the darkness.

  ‘Rush OK?’ a voice asked. It was Brick.

  Rush’s heart thumped at the sound of his friend’s voice. Brick’s breathing was ragged and laboured, and although he’d uttered only two words, it was clear to Rush the big guy was in serious pain. ‘I’m not sure,’ he replied. ‘Are you?’

  ‘The bad thing tried to hurt Rush.’

  ‘Where is it now?’

  ‘Dead.’ A sob escaped the big man. ‘Brick didn’t want to kill it, but it tried to hurt you.’

  Rush held out a hand. There were more scraping sounds as Brick crawled over to him. He felt Brick’s hand fold around his own. It was covered in a slightly tacky fluid that could only be blood. He wondered whose it was.

  Trying not to let his panic show, Rush did his best to control his voice. ‘I can’t see, Brick. That thing blinded me. Now listen carefully. Can you get the water from my bag for me? I need to wash this muck out of my eyes.’ Brick grunted, but instead of moving away and trying to locate Rush’s bag, he sidled up closer to the boy.

  ‘Brick? I need –’

  ‘Shhh, hold still.’

  ‘The water, Brick!’ he shouted. ‘Please. I have to get this stuff out of my eyes as soon as I can! It might be my only chance to see again!’

  Brick stayed, leaning in close enough for Rush to feel the man’s warm breath on his face. ‘Poison,’ he said. ‘Hold still.’

  ‘Brick?’ Rush felt his companion’s hands reach out and take him by the head, the fleshy part of his palms beneath his thumbs pressing into Rush’s eyes. ‘What are you doing? Stop that, you dummy! I need the w–’

  When he later thought about what happened next, the only way he could describe it to himself was like a flash of light so intense it took his breath away. A searing heat exploded in and around his eyes, filling him with an excruciating mixture of pain and exultation. He cried out – a harsh bark that was half laugh, half scream. Just when he thought he couldn’t possibly take any more, he flew backwards away from the big mutant as if he’d been shoved by an invisible force.

  He blinked his eyes and opened them. He could see. The gloomy cave, the tiny droplets falling from the roof, the lake, the stony shore – he took it all in in an instant. His saviour was sprawled on his back opposite him, as if the same invisible power had sent him flying too.

  Rush hurried over, taking in the extent of Brick’s own injuries for the first time. There was a low moan from the big guy. ‘Brick, are you OK? What just happened?’

  ‘I took it away.’

  ‘Took what away?’

  ‘The hurt. Brick took away the hurt that the monster put on Rush.’

  Rush gasped as he looked at Brick’s face. The big guy’s eyes were completely black – twin globes devoid of all colour. The flesh around them was purple and inflamed, and the veins beneath the skin bulged darkly as if filled with black fluid. Rush lifted his hand and waved it front of Brick’s face. There was no response.

  ‘Brick, what’s wrong with your eyes?’

  ‘The hurt is there now.’

  ‘You’re blind? You’re blind because of what you did for me?’

  A hint of a smile briefly touched Brick’s face. ‘Not for long,’ he said.

  Jax

  Silas looked across at the albino whom he’d watched grow from a stern young boy into an even sterner young man. As always, the youngster, now eighteen years of age, was dressed in black, the clothing accentuating his pallor and austere appearance. The interior of the room was dark; dirty curtains were pulled across the window to keep out the afternoon light. Jax preferred to avoid the sunlight that so easily burned his unpigmented skin. From somewhere outside came the incongruous sound of children playing, their high-pitched screams and laughter penetrating the thin walls. Jax sighed, small frown lines creasing his usually smooth white forehead.

  ‘They’re all on their way,’ he said.

  ‘Is it possible for you to work out who’s the nearest?’

  ‘Of course.’ He paused, concentrating again. ‘Flea and Lana are only about a day away. Anya is with Tink and should be here shortly after that.’ A ghost of a smile crossed his lips. ‘Rush and Brick found each other and are still together. They are a little further away than the others, but closer than when I last reached out to them.’ He opened his eyes and stared back at the man he’d lived with all this time.

  ‘You seem excited at the prospect of seeing them all,’ Silas said.

  The albino nodded. ‘Of course I am. Besides you, they are the closest thing to family I have. They are like brothers and sisters I’ve been estranged from.’

  Silas was surprised at Jax’s choice of words. He’d never heard the young man refer to the others in this way before. ‘Hardly brothers and sisters. You have no idea where the embryos Melk used to create all of you were from.’

  ‘What difference does that make? Like them, I share a syringe for a father and a test tube for a mother.’ He stopped, realising how his words might have hurt his guardian’s feelings. ‘I am sorry, Silas. I didn’t mean that you were not . . .’

  ‘That’s all right, Jax.’

  ‘I just want them all to get here safely.’

  ‘I’m sure they will.’

  Jax nodded. ‘I must lie down now. Locating others across such distances leaves me very tired.’

  ‘Of course.’ Silas stood up and went to the door. ‘We are doing the right thing, aren’t we? Bringing them here like this.’


  ‘They all deserve to know the truth, Silas. We agreed that if they were ever discovered, this was the best way forward. Why should they hide any longer? Why shouldn’t they come to understand the true nature of their powers and abilities?’

  ‘Their arrival will cause problems. Things will become very difficult for all of us.’

  ‘Things are already difficult for us, Silas. Maybe the arrival of the others will make it easier. Maybe it signals a new era for the mutants – one that doesn’t involve oppression, discrimination and tyranny.’

  ‘Maybe.’ Silas nodded to his ward and left, closing the door behind him and pausing on the other side. Or maybe it signals an altogether different era: one in which those inside the walls finally rid themselves of those beyond them.

  Rush

  Through the gap in the roof they could see it was now dark outside. Brick sat on a boulder by the side of the lake, winding the handle of the dynamo. His vision had returned, and he’d taken to jamming the torch into his face again to soak up the light from the bulb. The injuries he’d received seemed to bother him far less than one would expect. He’d been bitten about the head, shoulders and hands, many of the wounds deep and bloody. A piece of his left ear was missing and what was left was only just attached, hanging down at an odd angle like a lump of bloody gristle. His leg was hurt too, and the way he was holding it, ramrod straight, out in front of him, and wincing and looking down at it occasionally, suggested to Rush that this might be the thing causing his friend the most pain.

  ‘How are you feeling?’ Rush asked.

  Brick glanced up from the light and surprised Rush by offering him a big grin. He shook his head as if to tell the youngster not to worry. ‘Brick heal real fast.’

  Despite the extent of his wounds, the big guy didn’t complain once as Rush administered to him, not even when the youngster stitched the ear back on using a needle and thread he found in his bag and doing his best not to botch the job in the gloom. Too exhausted to move far from the lake, they camped next to it. Huddling in close to each other for warmth and to share the light, they no longer noticed the hydrogen sulphide stink as they feasted on the raw flesh of their erstwhile adversary. It had a rubbery, fishy flavour that wasn’t too bad after the first couple of mouthfuls. It was when Rush was butchering the carcass that he was able to fully take in the size of the creature. As big as Brick was, he had no idea how the man had managed to overcome it until he saw the large stalagmite, one end caked in blood, that lay on the shore not far from the monster’s dead body. He realised it was this he’d heard being torn from the ground moments before the creature’s tongue released his neck.

  ‘Thank you for saving my life, Brick,’ he said after they’d eaten. The words sounded inadequate. He shook his head, ashamed at himself for the way he’d behaved towards the man during their short time together. ‘I’m sorry I’ve been grouchy with you for the last few days.’ As he said this, he remembered his ankle, and the miraculous recovery he’d experienced in his sleep. Brick had clearly healed him then too.

  ‘Rush and Brick.’ The big guy said, looking earnestly back. ‘Friends.’

  The big man’s simple statement only heightened Rush’s shame. Tears welled up, and he turned his face away. Brick had been willing to lay down his own life to protect him, and Rush knew that from now on he wouldn’t hesitate to do the same.

  He rubbed at his eyes with his palms and smiled back at the big guy. ‘Friends.’ He nodded and held out a hand.

  Brick took it in his own, but rather than shake it, he pulled the youngster in, wrapping him up in a hug, despite his pain.

  ‘Brick tired,’ the big man said as he released him. ‘Always makes Brick tired to take the hurt away.’

  ‘You should sleep.’ He noted how the big man looked around warily. ‘It’s all right, I’m right here. It’s safe now. I’ll keep watch.’

  Brick nodded his big head and lay down, closing his eyes. The deep gentle snores that quickly followed were proof of the exhaustion he’d been fighting.

  Rush sighed and moved in closer to his friend for warmth. The light from the torch in his hand slowly began to dim, and he too was on the verge of falling asleep when he heard a noise somewhere overhead. Glancing up in the direction of the small opening in the roof, he could just make out a handful of stars in the sky beyond. He kept still and then he heard it again. It was the sound of men talking. Getting up slowly so as not to wake Brick, Rush crept beneath the hole and listened.

  ‘We should just kill it. Look at the mess that thing made of Bo’s leg.’

  ‘Are you mad? Sure, the critter’s mean, but that’s what we want, isn’t it? Besides, Bo’s a damn fool, getting near it like that. Now it’s in the noose it don’t pose us no risk.’

  There was an unmistakable hurghing sound that caused one of the men to curse and order the animal responsible to ‘shut the hell up’.

  Rush, his heart thumping, held his breath.

  ‘No, we stick to the plan. We take that animal to Log­­town and pitch it against those pig-dog things they’re so keen on.’

  ‘I dunno . . .’

  ‘That’s right. You don’t know. That’s why I do the thinking for us. And right now I’m thinking that critter will make one hell of a fighter, and those mill folk’ll go mad for the chance to see it go up against their boarnogs. The critter is as strong as it is ugly. And did you see those teeth? Tomorrow night is fight night. We bet everything we have on it, we’ll clean up!’

  ‘If you’re sure . . .’

  ‘Sure I’m sure. You doubting me? Hmm?’ There was a grunt when no answer came back. ‘Now we’ll make camp. I’m not going any further tonight.’

  Rush listened as the men moved off and he couldn’t hear them any longer.

  There was no doubt in his mind that they were mountain men of some kind, and that they’d captured Dotty. He had no idea what Logtown or boarnogs were, but one thing he knew for sure: he and Brick had to get Dotty free before these men made her fight for their pleasure.

  Full of anguish, but knowing he could do nothing before first light, he walked back to the recumbent Brick and settled down by his side. His life had been turned inside out since that night when he’d woken to the sound of armed men arriving at the farmhouse – when everything he’d come to love and count upon had been taken away from him. But out of that terrible nightmare he’d found first Dotty and then Brick. They were all he had now, and he was damned if he wouldn’t do everything he could to keep them safe. He listened to the steady plinking of water falling from the roof, his mind a swirl of emotions as he tried to formulate a plan.

  Despite his belief that sleep would prove impossible, Rush found he’d dropped off at some point during the night. He opened his eyes to see Brick was already up and about. The big mutant stood, his back to him, throwing stones into the black waters of the underground lake. Rush watched as his friend bent down to fetch more pebbles; the damaged leg was still clearly bothering him, but Rush could have sworn the cuts and lacerations on his face and hands were much smaller than he remembered from the night before. The only other wound that still looked bad was the ear. Purple and horribly swollen, Rush feared it might be infected.

  Brick, finally aware that he was being watched, turned around and nodded back in his direction. The flesh around his eyes was still a little puffy, but nothing more.

  ‘You weren’t kidding when you said you were a quick healer, were you?’ Rush said, approaching the man to get a better look.

  A big, lopsided grin was the only response. Rush leaned forward and stared at the bloody gap where one of Brick’s teeth had been knocked out. There was a hint of white poking out from the gory mess of gum. ‘Are you growing a new tooth, Brick?’

  The big guy shrugged and jammed his tongue into the gap. He looked mildly surprised at what he discovered there, but he quickly lost interest and went back to throwing the stones.

  Rush shook his head. As fascinating as Brick’s rejuven­ating powers we
re, he had other things to think about. He was convinced now that Brick had been the thing he was supposed to discover at the trading post, and Maw, like Josuf, had done everything in her power to protect her charge. For better or worse he and Brick were somehow linked. They had to get to City Four and find out what the hell all this was about. But first they had to rescue Dotty.

  He nodded to the rocky ledge they’d spotted the previous day. ‘Do you think your leg is strong enough to get up there, Brick?’

  ‘What about Dotty?’ Brick asked, looking back at the cavern entrance as if expecting to see the rogwan standing there.

  ‘She’s already up above us somewhere.’ Rush paused and then explained. ‘I heard something in the night – some men talking up there.’ He gestured towards the hole. ‘They’ve got her.’

  ‘Bad men?’

  ‘I think so, yes.’

  Brick gave a sigh. Without another word he set about climbing the overhang.

  The way up to the rocky shelf wasn’t too arduous; Rush and Brick helped each other, and pretty soon they were standing side by side directly beneath the gap in the roof, staring up at a perfectly blue sky beyond. Although it was only about five metres overhead, getting through the hole was going to be harder than Rush had first realised. They needed a way of getting the rope up there. In the end they settled on the stalagmite Brick had ripped out to kill the salamander. Rush went back down and, with some effort, managed to drag the thing to underneath the ledge, where he tied the rope Brick lowered to him around it.