Journey to a darker world

by Christian Mathis

  The screen took a moment to load, and then my heart sank, and I felt dead inside. Worse than I had ever felt, even worse than when I got my arm melted off. The first file was a journal entry, Annabelle’s journal entry. At first, I thought maybe they had stolen it and uploaded it after they had captured us, it listed specific instructions about all of us. She must have had one of those pens that can transmit whatever it writes. It told the men where we were, who was on guard what our plan was. File after file, I read about how either she had sabotaged us or how she set it up by telling these mercenaries exactly where to be so that they could be there ahead of us. To release the Duchess of Death, cockroaches, Millipedes. Every creature every catastrophe ever, death was because of Annabelle. I puked, and I puked, and I puked. After I had read through all of the files several times, I wanted to punch Annabelle in her pretty face and asked her why in the hell she did these Heinous acts. What her motivations were and what the hell she would be able to gain from all of this. I grabbed the thermal gun in my waistband, and I pressed it up against the computer screen, and I fired again and again until the computer was nothing a pile of melted metal.

  “Well Willard lets go, I cannot let everyone else suffer from the actions of Annabelle we have to rescue them and get out of this place and take care of Annabelle.”

  I used all my remaining strength to climb up the leather strap and back into metal electrical ducts. We made our way back to where the cells and cages were. More guards had arrived and found the previous guards I had killed. I didn’t care about being stealthy anymore I was exhausted physically and mentally, and I felt broken. I grabbed the thermal gun and shot several outlaws in the face before anyone else could react. Action is faster than reaction. I spit blood into their faces, and Willard stabbed several of the guards with the shards of glass. As it seemed we were invincible Willard took a shot through the leg. A limited amount of blood trickled from the would because the thermal energy is so hot. We sealed off the door, and I poisoned the rest of the guards with sting ray toxin. Willard was attempting to remove our friend's IV when I approached Annabelle’s Table. Her IV was empty, and no fluid was seeping into her body. Her eyes opened, and she leaped to her knees I clenched my jaws as she hugged me tightly and I ran a hand around her back. A few tears slipped out of my eye and rolled down my cheek.

  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw James’s massive frame bolt up and wince in pain.

  “James, I missed you so much, buddy!” I yelled as I ran across the room, and bro hugged James tight. The whole time I was hugging James and giving Toni, Zadok, and everyone else handshakes, I could not take my eyes off Annabelle. Except for the first time I wasn’t entranced by her beauty or wit, I was watching her because I knew what she was, and I was afraid she would hurt my friends if I took my eyes off her.

  Everyone else’s eyes were glued to Willard as if he were a dead man walking. The group hugged and him and got reacquainted.

  “Hey, Willard, I don’t mean to disrupt this tender moment where are we what is this facility and who are we up against,” Said Zadok. Willard and I exchanged glances and peeked at Annabelle before he responded.

  “We are on a ship that belongs to a group of government-hired mercenaries. They are outlaws. They don’t follow the rules or laws. They will use any means necessary. They are known as the Cardinals. They are criminals of the highest caliber. Catalyst and I took care of all the men in this sector of the ship; more are bound to follow. We need a plan, and we need one now,” said Willard.

  Reuben and James guarded the door Agatha we left restrained, and Toni, Zadok, Willard, and I attempted to plan of action and escape, from the ship and the planet. Annabelle had been checking on Agatha; she returned to where the rest of us were talking.

  “Are you ok Catalyst, what’s wrong? Ever since we woke up you have barely touched or talked to me?” She reaches over to place her hand on my face. I grabbed her wrist and pushed it away.

  “What’s wrong! What do you mean, what’s wrong this whole time you’ve been lying, faking trying to get us killed? You betrayed us, and you betrayed me!” I screamed in her face. Annabelle looked as if I was tearing her heart out of her chest; she began to cry. When she spoke, I could barely understand her through the flood of tears that poured down her face.

  “Catalyst how could say such horrendous things about me; I could never hurt you. I love you.” Annabelle tried to hug me,I turned around, and a tear slipped from my eye, and I looked over at my friends who spectated us confused. I was the one who was crying now.

  “Annabelle you can stop lying your only making things worse; Willard and I saw everything. The file the directions. How could you betray us, use us, and how could you work with them?” I said. All the other had gathered close and looked as if they were holding their tongues and forcing themselves to be quiet while Annabelle and I argued and screamed.

  “Catalyst I had to the president has my family in prison. He has my mother and brothers at gunpoint, and he said if I did not lead the mercenaries in keeping you here on this planet then he would kill them. The reason they captured you is to weaponize your powers. I would have to use this special pen that when I write it sends every word to this ship and the presidents.” I hesitated before I spoke because I still loved her and because I knew how much she cares about her mother. If I know one thing it’s that we do whatever it takes to save the ones we love.

  “Annabelle, I’m sorry while I understand why you did the things you did; I cannot forgive how many people you let die without telling us. We could have helped you. We could have fought these mercenaries together and then got back to Earth and rescued them. You pretended to be our friend you love and use me. You’ve broken my heart and me…”

  Annabelle interrupted me and looked around the room at everyone who thought they were her friends. She looked at everyone who had cared and protected her for so long.

  “I wish I could undo what I did. I can’t I wish we could have saved those people, we couldn’t know what was going to happen. You said that Catalyst. You almost killed Zadok to save me, and I promise I would have done the same. Don’t think for once second that what we felt together was fake. I never meant to hurt you, and I truly do love you.”

  Before I could respond, James screamed from the door. “Guys they are coming, get ready I think they are trying to bore through the door.” Toni’s sword and Zadok’s amulet must with the bad guys or hidden because they didn’t have them. I through Toni my thermal gun, and Willard gave his to Zadok. The sound of the door vibrating, and jarring grew louder and louder. The room shook, and sparks flew into our faces. Shuck. Willard extended his claws and posed my hands and was ready to poison. James creates his favorite blood sickles. A small hole formed in the center of the door that we watched it get larger and larger.

  “one thing when they break through the door, I say we throw them the traitor.” Said Zadok.

  Chapter nineteen

  “No, Zadok, we don’t turn on our own; she is still one of us,” I shouted. The hole in the door grew larger and larger while Zadok was squaring up Annabelle and me.

  “Catalyst, you only say those things because it’s your fiancé for crying out loud. You know if it were Reuben or Toni or especially me you would not hesitate to turn on us for betraying you and destroying your trust, “Said Zadok. BOOM BOOM. The outlaws began to fire shots from their thermal guns through the expanding hole in the door.

  “Now is not the time we can argue and vote on it later. Right now, I say let’s kill some damn outlaws.” Said Toni. The door began to melt away; smoke and an awful smell filled the room. Screaming and footsteps echo down the hall.“ No, we have to vote now, this witch PLAYED US AND TRIED TO KEEP US HERE UNTIL WE DIED OR THE COULD HARVEST OUR POWERS!” Zadok screamed while his face turned dark read, and his veins bulged from his face and neck. I saw it from both ways I understood Zadok’s frustration because it was equal to my own. I felt betrayed more than anyone else. She pretended to love me she laid next to m
e and cuddled me to sleep every night. I killed people for her. I checked my fist and gritted my face my eyes burned into Annabelle’s skull.We flipped over our tables, and all took cover in a different cell.

  “A Great colonel once said, don’t shoot until you see the whites of their eyes!” Said Toni.

  BOOM BOOM the Cardinals broke through the first cell and completely melted it after several minutes. I stretched the leather strap across the walkway from cell to cell. The outlaws emerged from behind the twisted metal wall. The head guard raised a red sword cut the strap in too. I ducked behind the table and cocked my gun and pointed it at the doorway. A shadow reflected off the roof, and I stood up ready to poison whoever came through the door. I heard dozens of shots and the clanking of metal on metal. Then came the sick sound of a sharp blade through flesh and meat.

  One of the mercenaries crept into the cell I was standing, and his sword was dripping blood. I kicked his legs out from under him and crushed his knee under my food. He swung his sword at me, and I blocked it with the gun. The blade bit deep into the metal, and the gun began to heat up in my hand I threw it at the man, and it exploded. Blasting me backward across the room. I was dazed for a few moments, and my ears rang. I wiped the mad blood from face and picked his sword up from the floor.

  The ringing in my ears began to fade. The screams of people filled the void.

  “Catalyst helps me, please help me!” Annabelle screamed. I ran out of the cell and toward the sound of her voice. The room filled with the smoke of the thermal guns. My head pounded, and my eyes stung. I searched for Annabelle but all I found was dizziness. I stumbled and caught myself when I began to stand, I saw Annabelle beautiful face.

  “Annabelle, what’s going on,” I mumbled. My eyelids grew heavy, and I was had trouble lifting them. I felt Annabelle’s thin fingers slid down my cheek.

  “I’m sorry Catalyst, this is the only way,” whispered Annabelle. I fell into an unconscious state, and when I woke up, I found myself once again restrained and imprisoned.

  “We should have handed her over or killed her when we had the chance. Every time we are close to winning, she is going to do something that keeps us from escaping. Look around Catalyst. Your girlfriend knows all our weaknesses all our faults and strengths. Guess what if we escape and fight, we will get imprisoned and escape and fight again over and over until we die. I was right all that time ago in Ehud’s prison. There will always be another cell Catalyst,” Said Zadok.

  “Zadok, you were wrong. We almost got off the if it were not for Annabelle’s betrayal we would have. I was the one who was wrong about lots of things. Things do change, People change, and life is not some heroes journey. There is no woven path -no easy way. In real life the journey is dark and shitty. Lots of people die and when you think everything will be alright it gets worse than ever before. The only way out is never to give up and always see the light at the end of the tunnel. Trick your brain because sometimes you see light that is not there imagining the light exist will push you. Now I don’t ever want to hear you tell me to give up again we got out of that, and we will get out of this. Annabelle will see that we can help her; she is doing what I would do if I was her and she was her mother. Anyway, you get what I am trying to say.” I was waiting for Zadok to respond to my rant all I heard was slow broken breathing.

  “Zadok, Zadok, wake up!” I screamed but he remained unresponsive. My eyes darted around the room, and I felt my heart beat faster and faster. My breath became quick and heavy, the angrier I got. My friends were no longer bound to tables. They were beaten and bloody; they had deep slashes in their arms and chest. I saw where James had attempted to coagulate the blood; I guess he could not get to all of them. Reuben’s leg was still oozing blood above the knee. Toni’s fake leg had been completely detached and was nowhere to be seen.

  “Ugh what the fuck have you done to my friends? I will kill you all!” I screamed and pulled away from the post I was chained to, my hands were bound at the wrist and encased in a metal gauntlet. I tugged and pulled at the metal chain until the gauntlet cut deep into my forearms.I put one of my feet onto the post and continued to pull on the chain until blood ran down my arms and onto the floor. I had to stop, or I would kill myself. I put my back against the post and slid down to the floor. My arms were uncomfortably pinned above my head; the blood continued to trickle down my elbows.

  “James. pst James wake up, Toni, Reuben, Willard wake up!” I screamed until James began to lift his head and bobbed it back and forth while regaining his senses.

  “James you have to detach your arm and free us. I tried. I can’t without ripping off my arm.”

  James tugged at his 3D printed arm, pulling harder and harder until finally I heard loud cracking noise and his arm ripped free, his hand snapped off in the gauntlet. He used his now spike-shaped arm to puncture a hole in his shoulder. Coating the jagged arm in hardened blood, which he used to hack at the chain until It broke free.

  “Catalyst, I missed you, man, and I wanted to say thank you for all the years you had my back. I love you, man, and if we can’t get out of here, we had a great run. “said James. He began to hack and slice through the chain as fast as he could. Bringing his arm up higher with each swing.

  “James Thank you for your undying loyalty. I will not quit, what is with everyone trying to quit, I never have, and I never will. “

  CLANG. The chain was severed through completely, and I stood to my feet. DOWOO DOWOO.A loud alarm had begun to blast through the building until The Cardinals rushed in. James tossed me at the guard, and I raised my bloodied hands, ready to strike and poison. My hand contacted the man’s neck, and I pumped cobra venom into his neck. Only the venom would not penetrate his skin it simply rolled off as it had with the Cockroaches and millipedes. They had made a synthetic light armor like the hides of those bugs. I felt hands tighten around my neck and my throat start to close. I clawed at the man’s massive hands to no avail. He dropped me to the ground and began to laugh hysterically. They threw me to the ground and re chained me to the post only this time they encased my torso completely in metal.

  “Fuck off you dumb bastards you can’t break me; you will never win,” I screamed.

  “Hahaha maybe not; I mean, we are probably going to win. Hey even if we don’t it will be really fun to try,” said one of the Cardinals. Thunder rumbled above our heads, and the roof shook.

  He raises his hands, and from his gloves hand, he extends claws like that of Willard. He stabbed the tip of one of his fingers deep into my jaw. I heard it start to sizzle and feel it burn as he drew an x into my flesh.

  “AAAAAAA You son of a bitch, “I hissed through gritted teeth.

  “haha is this not interesting to you? We were able to make synthetic acid and claws like that of … what were your friend's name, Gabriel?

  “How dare you disrespect him and desecrate his grave. I will make you a promise that I once made him. When I get free, I will kill you with the cruelest poison imaginable.” I screamed in his face, he laughed even harder as he dug his entire hand into my face one finger at a time and slot dragged them across my face. The entire right side of my face burned and itched and felt as if it was cooking inside and out. Five deep flesh seared black trenches down to the bone. The deepest of which pierced my eye which oozed and bled onto the floor. My screams finally jutted the others awake my body passed out from shock long before I was able to talk to them.

  “Hey bitch, wake up.” Said a familiar voice as I was slapped awake. When I woke up, I was alone in a dark room. The two men who were with me had been in the cell block when we attempted to break out. One was a dark Indian man and the other a white man with a long beard. Both were dressed in black and red suits and armor.

  “I am Harsh,” Said the Indian man as he pulled on one of the claw gauntlets.

  “Where my ancestors came from in India, it was a common name. It translates to Happy. Sadly, for you it is my job to make sure you are anything”

  The other
man stroked his beard and sharpened a red blade as he smiled and laughed hysterically. “My name is David, and like Harsh we will break you. See, most of your friends were easy to break they had already given up long ago. We already figured out ways to use the powers of your dead friends, and you will be helpless to save your remaining friends. Once we figure out their powers, we will kill them in front of you. I opened my mouth to speak the only sound that I uttered was a muffled grunt. My mouth was gagged and muzzled, my hand's mound in metal, and my knees locked to the floor.

  David took the top of his blade and heated it in heat from his thermal gun.

  Harsh stepped forward and dragged the claw down my back. “you seem to have a great many scars. You are no stranger to pain; that is why I know the only way to break you is to tell you the truth about your girlfriend.”

  He grabbed a pen from his pocket and tossed it to David. David scribbled random words onto a pad of paper on the desk. A gigantic screen blinked to life on the wall behind the men. He threw the pen at my feet. This pen was not the betrayal, and we did not make your ship crash. The pen was not what was special Annabelle herself. The door burst open, and Annabelle herself walked in. She undid the gag and muzzle and kissed my cheek.

  “Catalyst, it’s time to discuss the future and the past. These mercenaries are not government hired. Well they are. I paid them more, and now they work for me. After we unitized the powers we really will go back to Earth and take over the government and kill the president. Not to sound like a movie villain Catalyst it doesn’t have to be this way you can join me, and we can go back to Earth and take it over.…”