Chapter 18
Timepieces, whether worn on a wrist or hung on a wall, have little significance in a prison. No inmate bothers to mark the passage of time when no week, month, or year would bring them closer to release. If the hour of the day is forgotten or an appointment missed, a reminder can easily be given by the wrong end of a guard’s baton.
Yet on that night, the hour of day was of paramount importance to a large number of inmates. They counted down the hours, minutes, and seconds, until the display showed seven o’clock, cheering mightily when the appointed hour had arrived. For it was then that the euals began their assault.
Twenty metal feet marched in perfect unison, devoid of anger and malice, oblivious to the roles they were to play. They appeared to be singularly focused – even determined – but it was all an illusion. They had no free will, no choice, merely the overridden directive that pushed them forward, step by step. Down the hallway near the detox room and out into the Hub they progressed, their ovoid bodies reminding one of a carton of eggs let loose on a tabletop. Except these eggs split at some unheard command into groups of five, with one group heading for gate control and the other three marching with haste to the cellblocks.
Doors swung open, releasing Ian, Darren and three dozen others who represented the worst of the worst, the most malicious and vengeful of the criminals. They all stepped out slowly yet confidently, relishing their freedom, breathing air that, though the same, seemed infinitely sweeter. Ian cracked his knuckles, Darren cricked his neck, and they broke into a joyful run, as the others followed and cheered them on. Out through the main entrance they ran, into the Hub, on the hunt for the counselors.
The euals regrouped, as their programming progressed into the second phase of their mission. They moved quickly down the cellblock, stopping in front of several cells occupied by Imperium prisoners. Doors opened, screams were heard, and blood was spilt. Limbs were torn off, heads smashed, and before long those still locked-up were banging on their doors, begging to be released.
Suddenly, all the doors swung wide open, and the halls were filled with inmates running and shouting. Isaac had left his post, and Tannis decided to level the playing field, and give those Elaine sympathized with a chance. Matthew struggled out around a eual and motioned to Luke and John, who in turn rounded up the remaining Imperium prisoners. They fell back to a position near the stairwells, where they could outmaneuver the machines. A few of inmates tried to attack them, but Luke, John, and a few of the stronger men easily kept Matthew safe.
The other inmates, seeing the euals press forward against the Imperium prisoners, cheered and began to head for the main exit. They were confronted by a wall of ten euals that refused to move.
“Move aside!” cried one of the men.
“Go kill the docs!” cried another, “we’re your masters!”
Instead, the euals pressed forward. A few of the inmates ran in fear, but most of them saw freedom as too close and too attainable a goal. They attacked the euals, beating on them with their fists, trying to pull off their limbs. But these euals were made specifically for prisoner pacification, so their heads retreated into their egg-like bodies, their limbs shortened into thick stalks. The euals were now half the height of an average man, but possessed with ten times the strength. Their metal hands struck out at the legs of the men, either breaking bones or severing tendons. They crippled many of the prisoners, their cries resonating through the darkened complex, as their friends finally decided to retreat.
Some of the euals that Elaine reprogrammed reached Matthew and his group, and began to assault their brethren. The euals engaged in an odd battle, both using tactics meant to be used against soumans. They slashed at each other’s legs, tried to punch their chests, but both sides were locked in a stalemate.
The escaping inmates, now utterly frustrated in their attempts to escape, decided to vent their anger on Matthew and his men. Viciously they attacked one another, using parts of the fallen euals to try to gain the advantage. While Matthew’s men may have been fewer in number, they possessed years of experience in battle, in hand-to-hand combat. The two tides of soumans clashed against one another, with neither gaining the upper hand.
Though there were no alarms sounded, the cries of the fallen men brought Todd out of his suite to see what was going on. He reached the gateway to find Isaac examining a fallen eual, discovering its reprogramming.
“Damned Lainey,” he muttered to himself.
Todd scanned the area anxiously, in a state of near-shock. “What’s . . . what’s going on here?”
Isaac rose, and knew the part he must play. “Something’s happened to the euals. They’re out of control. You need to initiate a termination procedure of them.”
The sight of several dozen prisoners lying in bloody pools drew Todd’s attention, and he staggered back, confused as to how so much could have gone so wrong in so short a period of time.
“Turn off the euals? Without any idea what the situation is?”
“They're killing prisoners!” cried Isaac. “We must shut them down.”
“Why is the gate open?” wondered Todd in disbelief. “Where are the alarms? What is happening to my prison?!”
A shot rang out, and Todd fell to the floor. Isaac turned and found Darren and Ian approaching him.
“Glad you decided to come back to check on things,” said Ian to Darren. He leveled his gun at Isaac. “You fuckin' betrayed us!”
“Get some sense!” bellowed Isaac. “The euals were reprogrammed, probably by Lainey.”
Darren laughed. “That little piece of shit? You expect us to believe that?”
“She’s smarter than she looks,” said Isaac, not liking his particular view of the gun Ian was holding. “She brought you down with no problem, and—”
“That was a lucky punch,” spat Darren. “Kickin' someone and reprogramming a eual are two different things. How’d she get access to them? How’d she find the time to change ‘em all? And most of all, how’d she even find out about our plan?!”
Something clicked in Isaac’s mind. The image of her, standing in the hall, listening to him speaking with Philip, now came back to him.
“She must’ve—”
Another shot rang out, and Isaac fell to the ground, blood pouring from his head.
“Sooner, rather than later,” said Ian, with a gleeful grin.
“Now, onto the real fun.”
As the euals were locked in their stalemate, fighting near to Matthew’s men, word spread of Todd’s apparent death. The prisoners abandoned their fight against Matthew’s men, and managed to run out the main gates and into the rec area. Matthew’s group chased after them, pressing through the euals, and they became locked in a long, difficult battle.
Elaine heard all the commotion in her suite.
How many must die today, she asked herself, and how many must I kill? She could feel a hunger rise within her, a need for vengeance. As the prisoners fought themselves, so she fought herself, making herself stay in the suite, rather than grab a gun and whittle down their numbers. She stood before the mirror, and both images looked on one another in utter disappointment.
You damned coward. You would rather sacrifice your friends than foul your supposed moral core.
I have faith in them. They fought battles, are trained soldiers, and know what it takes to prevail. I am not some savior. I am an outsider.
She understood herself, in that moment. No matter how Oliver recognized her, no matter what identity he thought he saw, it still wasn’t her true face. She was a being who existed outside of their war, outside of their prison.
So why care about them? Why not leave, and let them be?
Because that’s what you would’ve done.
The door slid soundlessly open, and Elaine turned to find Ian standing in her doorway, with Darren hanging just outside.
“Can you come out and play?” cooed Ian, with a toothy grin. “I’ve waited so long for this day, swee
t meat! I’m gonna enjoy breaking that superior attitude of yours, enjoy plunging myself, and my blade into you, until I rise, and you die!”
Elaine stood in the dim light of her suite, her face bathed in shadow. “You should leave, Ian.”
“And where would I go? Mr. Toad is done, and his asswipe Isaac too. You did a great job turnin’ the euals against us. I didn’t believe it when Isaac told me. But seein’ you standing here, waitin’ for me, tells me you were smarter than I thought.” He shrugged. “And yet, dead just the same.”
He took one step in, and Elaine settled into a combat stance. Darren harrumphed, while Ian chuckled to himself. She stated plainly; “I don’t want your blood on my hands.”
“That’s good, because I’m not the one who’s gonna be bleedin'.”
A shot rang out, and Darren fell to the ground. Ian whirled, and saw Tannis in the doorway.
“His blood’s not gonna be on your hands,” said Tannis, as another shot rang out, and Ian fell dead. “It’ll be on mine.”
Elaine stepped over the dead body, resisting the strong urge to spit or kick him, and came close to Tannis.
“Any progress?”
“I got to most of your group, before the riot began. I freed all the prisoners, so your people would have a fighting chance.” He glanced at his watch. “It’s about eight. Do you wanna try this?”
“We’ve got to. Kneel with me.”
Oliver suddenly appeared in the doorway. “You getting’ started without me, sis?”
Tannis glanced at them both in shock.
“We found out in the detox room.”
Tannis shook his head in amazement. “Here I thought you two were sweet on one another.”
Elaine’s expression softened and she reached for Oliver’s hand, squeezing it. “We love one another – just not in that way. Now come on – we must focus!”
Oliver knelt with them, and together, they focused their minds on their past. In the Hub, Matthew motioned to his men to withdraw from the fight, and while Luke, John and a few others held them off, the rest knelt and focused on their pasts. All around the prison, almost a third of the population was doing the same thing.
“Focus your mind,” said Elaine. “We must think on our past – every detail we can remember! Our mother, our father, going to school, our first kiss – everything!”
Oliver reached over, and held Elaine’s hand tightly. Some part of her swooned with thick sentiment, remembering their childhood and all the long hours they enjoyed each other’s company. His face suddenly exploded in a joyful grin. “I think . . . I think I can feel something!”
Elaine could feel it too. It was as if a veil was being withdrawn from her perceptions. Memories of the Imperium, of the long war, of the sad defeat flitted by in her mind’s eye. Faces started to coalesce, along with identity.
Suddenly, an explosion was heard from within the prison bloc. The ground rumbled, bringing most of the soumans to their knees. Tannis got to his feet quickly.
“Something more of your doing?” he asked.
“Possibly.” A part of her wanted to stay in her mind, to understand more, but she knew time was growing short. “We need to get to the Hub! Freedom is very near . . .”
She and Oliver started off, but Elaine saw Tannis wasn’t following.
“Come on, Tannis!”
“This is . . . this is your freedom, Elaine. I have no place with you and your kind.”
“You have done so much for us – I will make a place for you!”
“And be branded a traitor among my own people? No, I think not. Just go, Elaine. Go and be free!”
The Hub was a cacophony of battle. Matthew’s men not only fought other prisoners, but euals that had broken free of their own battle. Above the upper window of the Hub was broken, along with much of the ceiling. The hum of a heavy engine could be heard, and a black shape blotted out the moonlight.
“Look!”
Suddenly five ropes were unfurled through the hold, almost reaching the ground. Ten soldiers in black fatigues, with what Elaine recognized to be Imperium insignia on their shoulders repelled down their length, with a couple of them using a small device to scan prisoners.
Elaine yelled and waved her hands to get their attention. “Hold on! Here we come!”
A few of the prisoners fighting Matthew tried to scale the rope, only to be knocked off by the Imperium soldiers. Matthew motioned his men towards the rope, but just as they started to break free of their battle with the prisoners, a small force of euals came in to the Hub. They started to fire bolts of electric current, stunning any prisoner that was hit. Matthew pulled his men back under cover, as the team in black reached the ground.
Suddenly she saw Ronald peek his head out from around a corner near the invading force. Elaine waved him on. “Take him! He’s one of us!”
Ronald waved to her, as he ran towards the Imperium soldiers. As he neared the ropes, several gunshots rang out. Elaine turned to find Todd pointing a small pistol, his left shoulder wrapped in a thick, bloody bandage. Five euals marched alongside him, each armed with heavy weaponry.
“Stop right there!” he bellowed. “Get back in your cells!”
“Never!” shouted Matthew defiantly. “We know who we are, and we will never go back!”
“Then you will die.”
He motioned to the euals, who opened fire on Matthew’s men. Ten were killed instantly, and they scrambled backwards, overturning tables to try to escape the hail of bullets. The Imperium soldiers fired on the euals, disabling two of them, but losing five of their men in the process.
“Hurry, Ronald – climb the rope!”
“He’s not leaving!” pressed Todd, as he motioned to the euals. “Repel the invaders!”
His euals moved with remarkable speed, and engaged the Imperium soldiers directly. Ronald scurried back as they fought. Finally, a few men signaled up, and another cable came down. They went for Ronald one more time, and a blast from Todd’s gun took out a segment of concrete near their heads.
“He’s not leaving!”
Elaine snatched a gun from one of the fallen euals near her. It was heavy, but she managed to aim it at Todd’s head. “Move away, Todd – move away!”
“Lainey,” shouted Todd, over the gunfire, “I will not allow these murderers to go free! Not while I still live!”
As the euals shifted their attention to the Imperium soldiers, Matthew’s men were able to come out of hiding and work to disable the euals. With their combined strength, two of the euals fell, but the remaining opened fire once again, forcing Matthew’s men into an adjacent corridor.
“Get back, all of you! Get back!” screamed Todd.
Elaine glanced over, and saw Ronald had been attached to one of the cables, and was being hoisted out of the prison. Todd turned, and raised his gun, but with one shot, Elaine dropped him to the ground.
“Come on Iona!” yelled one of the Imperium soldiers. “We can’t maintain this position much longer.”
She ran through, motioning to Matthew to bring his men in, but by that time more euals had arrived. They fired relentlessly on the Imperium soldiers, sending them back up the ropes. Heavy anti-aircraft fire could be heard from outside, and as the hovering craft pulled away, only four of the soldiers still clung to the ropes, with Ronald disappearing with them. Over the strain of the engine Elaine could hear him yell; “Thanks Lainey! Thank you!”
“Anything for you, my love!” she cried, as he rose through the roof. Nearby, Todd floundered in a pool of his own blood. Elaine stood over him, still holding the massive gun, debating whether or not to put a final bullet through his skull.
“Guess . . ,” he coughed up some blood, as he tried to speak, “guess you think I had this coming.”
Something within her laughed at his words, begging to be allowed to kill him. Elaine slowly moved her finger off the trigger. “Guess you did, filthy swine. I almost had some respect for you – why did you cross that line?”
He coughed again. “Maybe because I know who you really are. I lost a lot of friends in that war, to you and your kind. I needed to make you pay.”
Elaine fingered the trigger again, and aimed it at his skull. “Any last words?”
He smiled and laughed through the blood oozing up out of his mouth. “How long you think you’ve been here, Lainey? Or rather, Iona? Six months?” He lay back with a smile. “Try six years. You and I, we’ve been in that bed together more times than I can remember.” He wheezed, and grimaced in pain. “And it was sweet every damned time.”
He faded away, his head lolling to one side. Elaine screamed as loud as she could, and fired bullet after bullet into his skull, pulverizing his head, until she could fire no more.