by B.V. Bayly
Chapter Twenty-One
Gabriel had survived the night without anyone crashing through the door and trying to kill him. He stared at the door. He should have pushed the dresser against it, not the chair. What did the movies know? It was good to be on his own, hidden away from TERA, but he was far from safe. Would life ever get back to normal? He pushed the depressing thought from his mind and focused on getting ready for the night. He still needed to find a way inside the club. Once that was done, the rest would be easy. He walked into the bathroom and leaned on the counter. The sink filled with hot water as he waved his hand in front of it. He dipped a wash cloth into it and raised the wet cloth to his face. Drops of water ran down and danced over the shard, clinging to the sharp edges before trickling down his chest. He studied it in the mirror. It was the key. He just needed to learn how to use it. Hopefully, the Sphere could help with that. The Persephone was open tonight. First he would find the Sphere, and then he would find Adin.
The line waiting to get into Persephone was long. Hundreds of people lined the block, under awnings and behind a velvet, corded rope. All ready to party. The line moved slowly – a step forward every couple of minutes – you had to wait. Gabriel watched as certain folks walked up to the bouncers at the head of the line. A handshake or greeting followed as they passed the bouncers a bribe. He stared down at the plastic strip in his hand. They were pre-loaded with a hundred credits. He’d spent close to 30 just getting here. That left 70 to barter his way in. Hopefully, it was enough.
Gabriel jogged across the street and headed straight for the front door. As he got close, one of the bouncer’s noticed him. The bouncer was big. The kind of big that could rip off your arms and beat you to death with them. His head was shaved down to a mohawk and a holographic lens appeared in front of his face. It flicked with a green hue as it scanned Gabriel for weapons and contraband. The holographic screen vanished, and the large oriental bouncer stood in front of Gabriel with his arms crossed.
“Need to get inside.” Gabriel held out his hand, the plastic strip tucked in with his thumb.
The bouncer nodded and shook his hand, removing the strip. “Haven’t seen you before.” He curled his left forearm up and tapped on the armband covering it. “Let’s see if you’re on the list.” He grinned, revealing, a golden front tooth.
Gabriel took a deep breath. This better work. He watched as the bouncer seductively swiped the plastic strip across the screen.
“Little light.” The bouncer eyed him.
“It’s all I have – I need to get in.” Gabriel’s hands fidgeted.
“ID?”
Gabriel shook his head.
The bouncer slipped the plastic strip into his pocket. “Why don’t you move along, then?” He turned around.
Gabriel wasn’t going to take no for answer. “Hey!”
The bouncer halted and twisted around, getting into Gabriel’s face. “You want in? Ahead of the line and without an ID? You better have another strip, and it better be heavier.” He glared at him. “Otherwise, get lost.”
Gabriel stepped up to him, refusing to back down. “Celes told me to come here, and I’m not leaving until I get inside like she told me to.”
The bouncer’s face changed. He grinned. “So you’re one of them.”
“I was told to get inside.” Gabriel wasn’t going to admit anything.
“Yeah, I gotcha.” The bouncer nodded to one of the other heavy hitters at the door. He waved him over and the two had a fast discussion. The other bouncer disappeared inside. The oriental one strolled back up to Gabriel and lowered his voice. “Side door. Blue streak across it. Wait there.”
Gabriel nodded at him. “Good.”
The bouncer stepped back. “Get the hell out of here!” He raised his voice. “You wait in the line like everyone else, or piss off.”
Gabriel played along, raising his hands as if he didn’t want any trouble. “Whatever.” He backed up and crossed the street to the line-up. Everyone stared at him.
As he rounded the corner, the line continued around the bend with him. The crowd had given up staring at him. Or they were too far back to have noticed the altercation between him and the bouncer? Gabriel picked up his pace, scanning the brick wall of the old warehouse. Blue streak door. Where was it? The line of people ended. Gabriel hesitated for a moment, twisting back around to the way he'd come. Maybe he was on the wrong side of the building. He broke into a jog and looped around the next corner. Sure enough, a door blended into the shadows. He went straight up to the door and thumped the base of his fist against it.
Nothing happened.
Gabriel waited. His nerves were getting the best of him as he paced. He was so close to getting in, so close to finding the Sphere. His heart thumped in his chest. “Come on,” he whispered to himself. Several minutes passed and he thumped impatiently on the door again. It popped open.
“Settle down.” It was the oriental bouncer from before.
“Thanks.” He tried to slip past the large man filling the doorway.
“Whoa.” His large hand pressed against Gabriel’s chest. “Settle down. It’s all taken care of.”
“What is?” Gabriel stared at him.
“You’re looking for them,” the bouncer’s eye brows raised, “Right?”
“The Sphere?” Gabriel nodded. “Yeah.”
“They’re on their way.” The man crossed his arms. “Vans coming any minute - I’ll stay put with ya.”
Gabriel frowned. “Right.”
“Relax.” The bouncer checked the armband wrapped around his forearm. “We don’t see many like you anymore. Pretty rare.”
Every piece of Gabriel was jittery. He rubbed his hands together. “Yeah, you seen a lot of us before?”
“Sure, back in the day.” The bouncer glanced at his armband again.
“Everything alright?” Gabriel stared at him, glancing to the armband.
The guard put his arm down immediately. “Fine.”
Gabriel didn’t like this. If ore users had stop coming here, there was a reason. He stepped back slowly. “Right.”
The alley flickered with light. A van turned in and rolled towards them. The headlights blinded Gabriel as it got closer, and the bouncer focused it as it approached. A second vehicle turned in on the other end of the alley. It halted at the entrance, and waited.
This was all wrong. Gabriel’s hands curled into fists. “So, when’s the last time you saw Cerie?”
The bouncer focused on him, slipping something off of his belt behind his back. “Every weekend. She's always here.”
“Yeah?” Gabriel didn’t believe him and more. Cerie? “She’s got some pretty crazy green hair, huh?”
The bouncer faked a smiled. “Yeah, she’s a wild one, alright.”
Gabriel’s fist cracked into the bouncer's jaw in a blink of an eye. The bouncer stumbled back as Gabriel planted his food hard into the man’s chest. The van door’s popped open and a flood of men with dart guns poured out. Several darts pierced the side of his body. Not again. His chest rushed with heat, and it channeled across his body straight towards the pain. Gabriel pressed into the doorway, shoving the stunned bouncer to the side. The bouncer swung aimlessly at him, his fist covered with an electronic knuckleduster. It buzzed with energy as Gabriel swatted the bouncer’s arm into the wall beside him and pounded his fists into the man’s face. The bouncer’s eyes rolled back into his head as the last strike cracked into his jaw. Gabriel dropped him to the ground and clambered over his huge motionless frame. Gabriel was pierced by more darts as he rushed forward. He could feel their effects moving through his body. Every footstep was slower, his eyes blurred. It didn’t matter, he pushed on. If he could get to the crowds inside, he could lose them. Disappear. He clumsily sprinted down the hallway, his balance slightly off. Another bouncer stepped into his path from a side room, his eyes wide and surprised. Gabriel bolted right past him.
“Hey!” The second bouncer shouted.
Gabriel glanced over his shoulder as his pursuers charged down the hallway after him. They didn’t hesitate, colliding with the bouncer, the muffled pop’s of their dart guns sounding as they shot into the bouncer’s heavy chest. The man slumped over and fell back into the side room. Gabriel took a hard left. The walls all around him sparked as more darts were fired at him.
“Move!” He hollered at a group of serving girls and dancers chatting just ahead of him. A steel rack of liquor bottles stood beside them, bolted to the wall. Gabriel grabbed the side with one hand as he approached. He focused on the ore. “Do your thing!” He grunted as he yanked on the heavy rack. His arm burned with heat as a rush of energy streaked through his skin. His veins glowed. The tall steel rack tore out of the wall, the steel bolts taking chucks of it with them. Gabriel twisted the structure across the path behind him. The bottles shattered as he closed the gap off, a flurry of darts pounding into them. Amber colored liquor spilled all over the floor.
“Go, go!” Gabriel’s arms wrapped up the group of girls and shoved them forward. “Run!” He commanded as they screamed and wobbled forward on their high heels. All of them slipped out onto the stage inside the club. The flash of colored laser lights cut through the darkness of the club. The music blared in the air so loudly that nobody noticed the cries of panic coming from the girls as they scattered down into the crowd.
Gabriel stumbled off the stage, his body struggling against the drugs coursing through it. He spilled across the dance floor, knocking several people down with him. The patron’s were pissed. One of the men hauled him off the ground and slugged him in the gut. Gabriel lost his breath with the hit. He sucked in air and fought back, grasping the man by the wrist. Gabriel twisted underneath his arm and around behind the man. The patron’s arm straightened out and locked. Gabriel’s whole being vibrated as he leaned on the arm. The man screamed in pain and dropped to his knees. Gabriel hammered his ribs with a kick and released his arm. He didn’t have time for this. He twisted on the spot, still trying to recover his breath as another strike caught him in the face. His feet jerked forward and lifted from underneath him. He toppled back on to the ground with a crash, and his back smacked against the hard dance floor.
Everything blurred. Another hit smacked into his face, he could barely see his attacker as they stood over him. Gabriel wound up his arm and slammed his elbow into the attacker's knee, toppling him to the ground beside him. Gabriel staggered up onto his knees. He needed to run.
All around him people dropped to the ground as another spray of darts covered the area. Another dart hit him high in the shoulder. The music abruptly stopped, and the crowd screamed and backed off as the group of attackers charged in from the stage. It was too late.
A man’s deep voice echoed through the fog. “Settle down!” He ordered the crowd. “Everyone get back!”
Gabriel felt his body sway as he tried to keep his balance. It was the oriental bouncer from the front door. The man came into his blurred vision, and drove the electronic knuckleduster into Gabriel’s side. His whole body jolted in pain. He dropped paralyzed to the floor, unable to move.
The attackers hauled Gabriel up off the ground by his arms. He hung there, unable to raise his head, his eyes barely open.
“Nice doing business with you.” One of the attackers said with a thick oriental accent.
The bouncer stepped close. “I’ll call you if any others show up.”
