by M. R. Forbes
“Yes, sir!” they replied, returning to the vehicle. The doors slid closed, and Hayden could hear it begin sliding out of the station.
James walked over to Hayden, leaning over him so their eyes could meet. “You’re an impressive soldier, Sheriff,” he said. “I want to express my respect for you, even though I hate your fucking guts for killing my best soldiers.” His voice became harsher as he spoke, the anger rising to the surface and pouring out. “The way you used the trife against me. The way you survived Crosston and Fort McGuire, and even saved my people there. I don’t know if you’re lucky and dumb or a fucking tactical genius. To be honest, I don’t know what to make of you. You let Nathan run on Manhattan. You were smart enough to take the ring. But then you were dumb enough to give it back to him. You should have held onto it yourself, or even destroyed it. That would have been the best thing to do. You wanted to come into the lion’s den, to Edenrise. To talk? Even if we hadn’t grabbed you, if you’d showed your face in the city you’d have wound up right where you are.”
“You talk as much as Tinker,” Hayden said.
James stopped speaking. He paused a moment. “Be careful how you speak to me, Sheriff. I have all of the control here.”
“Fine. But I don’t give a fuck about your respect. I know what Tinker wants, and I know he’s ordered you to torture me to get it. Look at me, James. You might as well hang me on the wall and call me Art. I’m not going to give you what you want. Let Tinker send you out west. You’ll die there, powered armor or not. I guarantee it. You go west; you won’t come back.”
“You think pretty highly of your people, Sheriff.”
“Because they’re all like me. Every last one of them. A pain in the ass. A thorn in the side. We aren’t some disorganized scavenger community you can lord over. We’re in contact with Proxima Command. We have Centurion tech. We have Centurion training. And we have a few tricks up our sleeves.”
“The Centurions won’t have time to come rescue your people. And you might have their weapons, but their weapons aren’t Tinker’s weapons. Trust me, Sheriff, save the hyperbolic fluff and make things easier on everyone. Tell me what you know before I have to drag it out of you.”
“You know that isn’t going to happen.”
“I know. But I have to give you a chance. I don’t expect you to break easily. I think you can take a lot of punishment, and I am going to deal you a lot of punishment, Sheriff. And you will break eventually, and it will be more efficient for us than trying to bleed it out of random strangers and as you said, risking a number of soldiers to do it. It doesn’t matter what you have now. When the virus is delivered, all your Centurion trained soldiers will be dead just like everyone else.” His lips split into a vicious smile. “Except for you, Sheriff. You don’t get to die that way. You don’t get to die easy. Not unless you talk. What is John Wayne?”
Hayden stared at James without speaking. They remained that way for a few seconds, and then James circled to the head of the bed, grabbing it on either side and pushing him along the platform toward a hatch at the back of the station.
“It’s unfortunate we had to meet like this, Hayden,” James said. “It’s unfortunate we had to be on opposite sides. Men like you don’t come along every day.”
“Men like me?”
“You’re like James Stacker. The original James Stacker. There’s no quit in you. Not the smallest sliver. Part of me hates that I hate you.”
“You should hate yourself for helping Tinker. This isn’t going to end well for any of us.”
“Don’t worry, Sheriff. We’ve got everything under control, including you.”
They reached the hatch, moving through it as the doors ahead of them opened. Entering a long concrete tunnel with a blast door at the end, James picked up his pace, reaching the blast door and stopping to use his fingerprint to open it. The heavy steel door moved aside, revealing a round room filled with workstations and displays, all of them currently dark and quiet. A pair of doors led out of the room on either side, and James directed them toward the door on the left.
Hayden had seen a similar setup before, recognizing it as a United States Space Force research module even before he saw the eagle and star logo stenciled on the wall. The modules were prefabricated facilities, able to be assembled wherever they were needed in a matter of days instead of months. It was in modules like these that the Space Force had run their bioweapons research, trying to find a way to re-engineer the human genome into something capable of standing up to the trife. Things like the Hellion or the Goliaths.
Today, the Iron General was going to use it for a much simpler purpose.
Hayden was no stranger to pain.
He was going to find out how much he could take.
Chapter 4
Nathan hurried out of his apartment, keeping his sidearm in his good hand and behind his back as he emerged into the hallway. He glanced in each direction down the length of the corridor, finding it clear. He then tucked the pistol into the back of his pants, covering it with his shirt. There was no reason to scare any of the other residents without a good reason, and his hallucinations didn’t meet that criteria, at least not where anyone else was concerned.
Was he the only one seeing things? Until he came across someone else, he had to assume he was. But what if whatever was causing him to hallucinate was affecting others in the building or worse, in the city?
He ran to the lift, tapping on the control pad to bring it to his floor. Not knowing the cause of his distress made him more nervous. Had he caught some kind of disease? Was he contagious? Was there a virus or toxin loose in Edenrise? Doc hadn’t mentioned finding anything like that in the tests she had run on him and James.
The lift arrived, emitting a soft tone as the doors slid open. Nathan hurried into it, surprising a man in a dark suit, who stepped back as he boarded.
“General Stacker,” the man said. Then he shook his head. “No no no. Wait. You’re Colonel Stacker, aren’t you? Your hand is flesh and blood. Is there a problem, Colonel?”
Nathan kept staring at him as the lift closed and started to descend. He recognized the man from Tinker’s party. He was one of Edenrise’s administrative monkeys. One of the ones who had eyed him with jealousy and disdain. Now the man was looking at him with fear.
“Have you seen anything out of the ordinary tonight?” Nathan asked.
“No, Colonel,” the man replied. “Is there a problem?”
“I hope not.”
He wasn’t going to tell the man about how his robot companion was on the floor of his apartment in a pool of lubricant, or how the apparition of a sheriff who was too wounded to be anywhere but in a hospital had shot her. It sounded crazy enough when he said it to himself.
They took the rest of the ride down in silence. The doors slid open, and the man motioned for Nathan to exit first as if he had a choice. Nathan stepped out of the lift and into the lobby. His hand swung absently to the location of his gun, resting close to it on his back.
There was nothing out of the ordinary happening here. A group of officials were standing near the concierge, laughing and talking. An older couple was on their way out the door to a waiting car. A janitor was sweeping the floor. Soft music was playing over hidden speakers, and he smelled flowers and polish.
The man who had been on the lift went over to the other officials, speaking softly. They all quieted and looked over at Nathan. He realized then that he probably looked out of sorts in his gray tank-top and soft gray sweatpants. He hadn’t been planning on leaving his apartment before Ebion had shown up to request his presence at some council meeting, and now he made the connection between that meeting and the officials gathered near the desk to his right.
Nathan walked over to them, cutting through the middle of the group without a word and getting the attention of the concierge.
“I need a ride to the hospital,” he said. The building wasn’t far, but it would be faster to take a car.
“Of cours
e, Gen...Colonel Stacker,” the woman said. He noticed a familiarity to Ebion. Was she one of Tinker’s robots? They were so hard to identify as inhuman.
The woman left the desk and went to the back room.
“Colonel Stacker,” one of the officials said. He was a chubby man with wisps of white hair trying to cover his bald head. “Were you invited to the council meeting? Tinker had mentioned the general would be there.”
“Tinker invited me,” Nathan replied. “I don’t know if I can make it.”
The chubby man laughed. “Oh. Word of advice, Colonel, from someone who knows.” He lowered his voice and leaned in. “Don’t make the mistake of thinking Tinker’s invitations are optional.”
He stood up straight and smiled. Nathan could guess how well Tinker would take his absence, but once he learned about Ebion? Even he had to understand the importance of getting to the bottom of her destruction.
“Thanks for the advice,” Nathan said as the woman came back to the desk.
“It will be here any moment, Colonel.”
“Thank you.”
Nathan left the men behind. He could hear their quiet comments behind him as he moved away, expressing concern for Tinker’s decision to bring him into the fold.
Fuck them.
He exited the building. The street was fairly quiet, and he could hear a large engine approaching. He looked to the left, finding his ride right away. It was the only large vehicle on the streets – a long, black car with dark windows and the eagle and star logo stenciled on the hood.
It glided to a stop beside him, the door swinging open on its own. He ducked into the car, the door closing behind him.
“Colonel Stacker,” the driver said. “You need a ride to the hospital?”
“Yes,” Nathan said.
“Are you feeling okay, sir?”
“I’m not sure.”
The car pulled away, making a quick u-turn in front of the smaller scooters and bicycles that were the civilians’ main forms of transportation. Then it accelerated hard, the engine roaring as it gained speed. Nathan looked out the window, watching the pedestrians stop to watch the car as it zoomed past them, the driver blowing his horn and shouting to clear the path ahead.
It came to a stop less than a minute later, reaching the large sliding doors at the front of the hospital. Nathan opened the door himself, jumping out before the car had even come to a stop. He ran inside, directly to the front desk.
“I need to see Doc,” he said to the man stationed there.
“General Stacker?” the man said before noticing his hands. “Wait, it’s Colonel Stacker, right? It’s a pleasure to meet you, sir.”
“Doc,” Nathan repeated.
“One moment, sir.” The man reached for a phone, tapping a button on its base. “Major Anderson, please report to the front desk immediately. I repeat, Major Sarah Anderson, please report to the front desk.”
He hung up the phone.
“Are you kidding?” Nathan said. “This is a fucking emergency.”
The man flushed, and he looked away, grabbing the phone again.
“Stacker,” a voice said from behind Nathan.
He turned around. He knew what he was going to see. Or rather, who he was going to see.
Sheriff Hayden Duke.
Chapter 5
“Do you see anyone standing in front of me?” Nathan asked the man behind the reception desk.
Hayden was motionless, his gun aimed at Nathan’s chest, his eyes narrowed and focused. Nathan knew it wasn’t real. He knew Hayden wasn’t there. But he had seen what happened to Ebion. It didn’t seem to matter if the hallucination existed or not, it was still able to cause damage, as impossible as that sounded.
The man stood to get a better look. “No, sir. What am I looking for?”
Nathan kept his hand near his sidearm, reaching under his shirt to grip the handle. “A man with a gun.”
The man behind the desk noticed his weapon. “Sir, there’s no one there. Please, keep your weapon where it is.”
Nathan did as the man said. There was nobody there. Hayden was a figment of his imagination. The effect of an unknown cause. Sheriff Duke stared at him, chest heaving as he breathed, his revolver still and steady.
“Nobody there,” Nathan said out loud. There were a few other people in the lobby. “Does anyone see a man with a gun standing by the entrance?” he asked loudly.
“No sir,” one of the people said.
“No,” another replied.
“Are you crazy?” a third suggested.
Nathan exhaled. He knew it was his mind playing tricks. Except...every other time he had accepted the hallucination wasn’t real. It had vanished.
Why was Sheriff Duke still there?
“Is there something you want?” Nathan said.
Hayden twitched slightly.
“What is this? Some bullshit manifestation of my guilt?”
Hayden’s lips split in a feral smile. He started to laugh.
“I don’t have time for this shit,” Nathan said.
“Sir?” the man behind the desk said. “Major Anderson is on her way. So are the police.” His voice was quaking. Frightened.“
“Police? Why?”
“Just a precaution, sir.”
Hayden lowered the revolver, tucking it into the holster at his side. He was still smiling. Still laughing. He wiggled his fingers over the handle of the gun.
“Come on, Stacker,” he said.
He wanted to duel. Again. Nathan had lost the last time they did this. His shot had missed. Hayden’s shot had been perfectly placed.
He moved his shirt aside to get unobstructed access to his sidearm.
“Sir!” the man behind the desk said.
The others in the lobby began to move, heading for the doors. Where were they going?
“I’ll protect you from him,” Nathan said.
“From who?” the man said.
“Sheriff Duke,” Nathan replied.
“Sir, there’s nobody there.”
Nathan wiggled his fingers over his gun, the way Hayden was doing it. Nobody there? No. Hayden was there. He could see him. He could almost fucking smell him. But that wasn’t right, was it? Didn’t he just think he was hallucinating a second ago? Didn’t he think--”
Hayden’s hand twitched, reaching for the gun. Nathan moved too, grabbing his weapon and whipping it forward, pulling the trigger as he did. One shot. One round. It hit Hayden in the chest before Hayden could get his gun out of its holster. He toppled backward and onto the ground.
“Yes!” Nathan shouted, smiling. “Fuck you, Sheriff.” He started walking toward Hayden as the doors behind the Sheriff opened, and a squad of men in black uniforms rushed in. “I got him. Did you see that? I fucking got him.”
They raced around Hayden, flanking Nathan. They had stunners in their hands.
“It’s okay,” Nathan said. “I got him. They’re safe. I stopped him.”
The officers fired the stunners from both sides, hitting him with four rounds in less than a second. His body shook slightly from the jolts, and his legs went numb. He dropped to his knees.
“What the hell?” he said. “I helped you! Look!” He pointed toward Hayden.
But Hayden was gone. A police officer was on the ground in front of him, blood pouring out of the hole Nathan had put in his chest.
“Nathan?”
He turned his head. Doc had come out of one of the doors and was running toward him.
“Nathan, what did you do?”
“Hayden,” Nathan said, suddenly cold and shivering. “It was Hayden. I swear.”
The other officers were approaching him. One of them had cuffs in his hands. It reminded him of Proxima. When they had arrested him. He had woken up in pain. So much pain. He didn’t want that to happen again.
He held out the gun, pointing it at the men. “Get the fuck away from me!”
“Nathan!” Doc snapped, getting closer.
“Doctor,
please stay back,” one of the officers said.
Nathan swung his weapon toward that one. Three more stunners hit him, and his arms went numb. He dropped the gun.
“You’re under arrest,” one of the officers said.
“No,” Doc said. “Do you have any idea who that is?”
“A murderer,” the officer said.
Murderer? Nathan felt sick. What the hell had he done?
“Colonel Nathan Stacker,” Doc said. “He’s a Liberator. You aren’t taking him anywhere. Nathan, it’s okay. Hold on.”
What the hell had he done? Hayden wasn’t real. Why had he thought Hayden was real?
“I recognize him,” the officer said. “But he just killed one of my men.”
“I don’t care. What you’re going to do is stun him out. Then you’re going to help me get him to a room. He’s sick, officer.”
“Sick in the fucking head.”
“Exactly. Stun him out, get him to a room, got it? Don’t argue with me, or you’ll have General Stacker to answer to.”
“Stun me out?” Nathan said. “I’m fine, Doc. I’m fine. I just got a little confused.”
“Nathan, relax. It’ll be okay.” She glanced at the officers on either side of Nathan. “What are you waiting for?”
Four more stun rounds hit him, causing him to convulse from the shocks. His entire body went numb and he toppled forward, his entire body going numb. He could sense the officers moving in around him and grabbing his body. They lifted him off the floor. His mind began fading, leaving him unable to form a coherent thought. His vision blurred and everything went dark.
Chapter 6
Nathan didn’t wake slowly.
His eyes snapped open, and he immediately tried to sit up, only to find his wrists and ankles restrained.
A wave of panic washed over him, and he tried even harder to rise, pulling and bucking against the bonds. He turned his head, trying to figure out where he was.
He froze when his eyes landed on James. All of the fight fled from him, and he settled back on the bed.
