Shades of Gray
#8
Land of the Twilight
Closing Of Days
Kristie Lynn Higgins
SHADES OF GRAY: Land of the Twilight- Closing of Days
Text Copyright © 2011 by Kristie Lynn Higgins
Cover Art Copyright © 2011
Smashwords Edition
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The heart has died in the land of the Twilight. And with it hope has been extinguished. Woe to those who see the Twilight, for the Closing Of Days draws near.
From the Assembled Works
Ginn L. Irynkissgthie 525 B.D.C.
Prologue
The Chimera Strain, for the moment, had been halted at the gates of the Sphinx Corporation Third Branch Office. The Chairman and the S.C.Ms. prepared to fend off Anubis and his army of xombions. Orthos moved forward with his coup, and the three members of the Furies searched for the third element to the Chimera Strain, Arcamedes' Closing Of Days. Adam Greenhouse neared the release of the Gorgons, and the Council and Brian dealt with the effects of the PP BL-S.
Chapter One
Land of the Twilight
The year 32 A.D.C.
October 32...
UnDay...
-9:14 A.M.-
Hellenistic Sector, Business Vicinage...
Sphinx Corporation Third Branch Office...
Fire consumed the Play Room as it roared about like a hot elemental dragon. The flames burned away the flesh and clothing of the three dead bodies along with the examining chair and computer equipment. What once had been a hellish torture chamber to a girl in her pre-teens was now a nightmarish memory to Kat. “Will it fade as dreams do with each waking moment or will I come to find out I'm still in the nightmare?” she wondered. “Will I discover that I can never wake from it?”
She made her way through the hall away from Dante's blazing vision and paused at the corner. Flames lapped at most of the walls in the area where the dark shockwave blasted its way out of the building and across Noir. Soon Level 13 would be an inferno. If she didn't leave soon, she would end up like Kim. She would end up like the charred remains of her once friend.
I pause at the corner, feeling numb, numb to all things good. I seem only to experience dark emotions. The kind where I want to destroy everything living and nonliving. Don't I care about anything? The heat the fire generates doesn't bother me. Do I secretly wish that the flames would consume me? Consume me as I have devoured all happiness? Or do I urge this infernal plague, urge it to destroy all of Noir?
I lean against the wall where the fire has yet to touch it. I don't dare turn and look back at the Play Room. What am I afraid of? Am I afraid I'll feel something besides rage and hatred when I look at Kimberly and Stephanie's burning bodies? That I'll feel remorse over what I've done? Or do I pray that some sort of conscience will arise and plead for me to go down the road to redemption? I wait. No moral voice rises. No ethical petition fills my thoughts, only the rage that lies within me like a sleeping leviathan occupies my mind. It's a fanged behemoth that has its belly full of innocent blood. It's a dark creature who will not sleep forever. Its craving for destruction will make it ravenous again.
The stench of Kimberly and Stephanie's cooking flesh fills my nostrils along with the rotting smell of the baking Frogga-mutation. I can't think about Kimberly or Stephanie anymore. It hurts too much. They are part of my past, and the Twilight is my future. Kimberly... You... You're part of a past I can't return to. Can never return to. And that makes me sick to my soul. My future is burning before me and my past is turning to ash. Is there any hope? No. I snuffed out the small glimmer with one careless, one very careless and stupid act. An unforgivable action that I would do anything to take back. My blackening heart pleads for it to be a lie, but my mind tells me it's true. I'm a murderer. I killed my best friend. Someone who was like a sister to me.
The winged dragon within me shrieks in victory. It knows the path that lies before us. Knows the darkness I have embraced. The winged dragon has won. The Chimera Strain has won. And I have lost everything. How did this happen? How did I get to this very point? What went wrong? I look at my palm that no longer bears the puncture mark of the Frogga-mutation's stinger. Anubis. He did this. He's at fault. Him.
A rage so searing brands my soul and darkens it with hatred. I will kill Anubis. I will destroy Anubis. He's the one who brought about the Chimera Strain. He's the reason I was infected. He's why I killed Stephanie. Why I killed Ki...
The red and black tears roll down my face. Why did I wait till now to cry? Why, when they do me no good? I feel empty inside. Dead. No. That's not right. I do feel something. Rage. It flames within me like the fires that devour this floor. I continue to shed tears as the winged dragon insists I move on. We have things to do. I wipe away the warm liquid from my cheek.
Kat moved around the corner and headed for the nearest staircase.
I stare at the red and black streaks on my hand. I'm a monster. Tears are... tears are for those who have hearts that do more than beat. Tears are for those who can experience grief. I'm beyond that, right? I'm beyond caring, right? I shouldn't be crying. So why should I care if I am? It doesn't mean anything, right?
Minutes passed.
I am fixated on this bizarre phenomena. Why now? Why am I crying?
So many times I wished the tears would come. I wished they would fill my eyes and give me some relief from the sorrow and heartache I have experienced over the past year. But for them to come now... Why am I crying?! Sheez! Am I sad that I ended Stephanie's life? That I actually killed someone? Crap! This is so freakin' ridiculous! I had worked so hard not to kill anyone. So maybe I am. No. Maybe I was. Do I really care that I eliminated my enemy? Do I care that I eliminated someone who had been trying to kill me? Someone who took my place as Kimberly's sister?
I feel a smile spread across my face. No. I guess not. She got what was coming to her. And to think she thought she was the better project.
Kat pushed open the exit door and started down the stairs.
So why am I crying? If I truly have no remorse over Stephanie's death, why are bloody tears rolling down my face? I wipe my cheek again and look at the red and black liquid. I know the red is blood, but what is the black? Is my dark soul seeping out? And why haven't I asked myself the other question? Why am I ignoring the second body that I left behind in the Play Room?
I divert my thoughts. I have to think of something else. But what? Right. Anubis... If I'm to close him and his minions I need to gather the H-Chies. But are there enough of them? Are there enough to face Anubis' hordes? Maybe I should create more. All I need to do is change a couple hundred and I should have enough. His main forces have started moving down. I can sense this. So how do I...
Without warning, my legs give in and I collapse to the floor. My knees and palms smack on the hard surface as I'm barely able to keep up my heavy frame. It's a body weighted down by guilt and shame. My body shakes. At first, I don't know why. Then I realize, oh God... I realize I'm sobbing. One that I can't control. Stop it! I yell at myself. You're the Rushlight, the one who brings about the Twilight. The one who will bring about the Closing Of Days. I shouldn't be weeping like some child. But I can't stop it, and I sob for several minutes. Images of Kimberly bombard my mind.
Why did I kill you? You only wanted to help me. Why did I kill one of the few people who meant anything to me? If I'm a monster, why does it hurt so much? Why do I feel like I'm dying inside? Not the light side of me as blackness takes over and crushes it. That has already happened. The side who is dying, is the me now. Why?! I'm wicked, I'm vile... Why does this hurt so much? Why?! I'm not suppose to care about anyone, so why?! Why do I feel like I want to rip out my own heart? Rip it out so it no longer infects me with its... its... its tormenting anguish. Why?!
Blots of red and black drip to the white tiles.
Kat lifted her head and wailed, “Kimmie, why did you leave me alone?!”
“My dear, listen,” a faint voice called out to her. “Katharine listen.” The voice in her mind was Ginn. “You have to...”
“No! Shut up! Why didn't you do something to stop me?!” she screamed. “You knew I would kill Kimberly didn't you?! Why didn't you stop me?”
“Stop you?” Ginn questioned. “What could I do to stop you from going down the path of destruction? You had to go. You had to understand the darkness in your soul. Now listen... There is still time to stop the Twilight. There is still...”
“No! Shut up! It's too late! Kimberly's dead and I don't care what happens now. Do you hear me?! I don't care what happens now!!” She stood and her eyes glowed black. “This world is going to burn! I'm going to destroy everything! I'll bring the Closing Of Days!!”
Chapter Two
Another Surprise From The Xombions
Earlier...
Before Kat killed Stephanie...
8:31 A.M...
Anubis opened the door leading to Level 300. "Puck! I don't ever... want to walk down... that many stairs again. Never!" He put a hand to his bare chest as he heaved for the exertion. "Puck! I can't believe... how tired I am. How many floors did we walk down?"
Jacob and his Guardian-mutations followed. The dozen silver skinned hybrid-xombions encircled Jacob as if he was the President of a corporation visiting a rival company that had already tried to take the President's life twice. The Guardians maintained a ten foot perimeter. None of the other xombions were allowed anywhere near the witness. They made no noise, nor did they seem as mindless as the Commons or other hybrids. They had an intelligence to them, a predator like smarts that they used to protect. They watched their brothers and sisters, studied them for any signs they may attack. The Guardians knew the meaning of their existence, and it had only one purpose. They were to protect the one who would behold a new age, an Age of Xombions.
Anubis repeated his question as the blood-red outlining of his skull tattoo faded slightly. "How many floors did we walk down?"
“I...” Jacob stopped once he had moved about twenty feet from the exit. He bent and rubbed his bad leg. "I don't know. Too many." He also breathed heavily. "And you can't say we walked. It felt like running to me, at least in the beginning." He mumbled, "Once I couldn't keep up, one of the Guardians threw me over his shoulder and bolted down the stairs. Again, I was carried around like some damsel in distress. For the love of Patty! I'm a man not some persecuted maiden!" He muttered, "Pucking demon... Dragging me everywhere... Who does he think he is? Satan reincarnated?! Puck! Make a good God fearing man curse!" After sulking some more over the demeaning treatment, Jacob questioned, "Why were we running? What's the hurry?"
"I do have a Twilight to bring." Anubis watched as xombion after xombion filed in through the exit and started in one of two directions.
The Guardians blocked the third direction. They wouldn't allow them to enter the hallway straight ahead where they had created a protective circular wall around Jacob. For the most part, the other xombions knew to stay away. Their master had ordered it.
Anubis added, "Why make everyone wait?"
"You make it sound like a vacation bonus, not the end of the world."
"I guess I'm very excited about what's to come." Anubis stretched out his senses, those that told him where his children were. For the most part, they traveled down from the hundred floors above them, making their way to their master.
Jacob peeked through his fleshy cage of mutated bodybuilders. "So what kind of new world am I going to see?"
Undead, Common and hybrid alike, staggered in from the stairwell as rigor mortis took its toll on the human part of their bodies. Decaying flesh and rotting blood oozed from bullet holes and wounds from earlier battles with pre-hosts. Darkening shades of red splattered the Commons and an array of aged purple blood covered the hybrids.
"What kind of world? A utopia beyond your worst nightmares. I'll create evil and..."
"Create evil?" Jacob interrupted. "Evil's already in all of us. You can't create it."
"No, but I can nurture it." Anubis was proud of his children and soon he would bring more into the fold. But the task before them wouldn't be easy. He had already sent Frogga-mutations to scout ahead. The Chairman and an army of S.C.Ms. waited for them on Level 370.
“Can't wait,” Jacob said.
He then thought, “He's insane.”
Jacob looked around the area, that was what he could see past his Guardians, and asked, “So why are we on this floor?”
One of the Common Xombions stopped mid-lumber and turned to the pre-host. Something stronger than the master's will took control of him. The Common Xombion smelled Jacob's tantalizing life liquid. He growled and the Guardian-mutations glared back at the feral xombion with their bright blue eyes. The Common pushed his way through the massive stream of undead until he reached the corridor that had been deemed off limits.
Anubis started to answer the gimp's question when he noticed the one infected go astray. “It would seem I need to make sure of my bond with my children. This one ignores my commands. I'd deal with him myself, but the new ones need to be tested.”
The Common tried to force his way through two Guardian-mutations. One of them grabbed the Common by his throat and lifted him high in the air. The Common clawed at his arm as the Guardian moved from the ring. As the one left, the other Guardians repositioned themselves to better protect Jacob. The Guardian with the Common in his grip walked to the end of the corridor toward the exit and stopped where the hallways connected. He dropped the Common, and the Common immediately moved to go after Jacob. The Guardian shoved him back with each attempt and on the Common's sixth try, he grabbed him by the head and broke his neck. The Common's body limply fell to the floor.
Jacob looked on with calloused eyes as he thought, “I've already seen so much death. What's one more life snuffed out?”
The Guardian returned to the circle.
Anubis finally answered Jacob's earlier question, “We're on this floor because this will be the staging area.”
"So you still plan on attacking the Chairman's forces down stairs? What about Orthos and his men up stairs?"
"Him, yes. I've also been wondering why the Head of Security hasn't done anything yet. What's Orthos up to? Maybe he's waiting to gather all their forces and between him and the Chairman's forces sandwich us in. A move like that would work, but then I remember we number a little over 3000. That would make us about a fourth of their strength. Actually 3000 isn't correct. I would say about 4000, but I'm having problems communicating with about seven hundred of my children. All the Frogga-mutations and Guardian-mutations are accounted for. It's the members from the other three groups that are out of sync with me." Anubis scratched his shaven head as he noticed Jacob gave him a blank look. "I'm getting off subject. Even if they do outnumber us four to one, with each bite and sting we'll add more to our numbers. Five might fall, but twenty will rise in their place."
Jacob long ago had tuned out his' rantings. When he once again focused on what he was saying, he snapped back to his surroundings, waited till Anubis finished, and asked, "So why are we stopping here?"
"Why? Oh right, the why. We are here to mass the troops for an all out attack."
"Please tell me, even with the apes you have watching me, you aren't going to send me to the front line?" Jacob questioned.
"No. Of course not. I don't want you dying by anyone's hand. So I'll keep you safely away from the battle, but still close enough to see it."
The infected mobilized from all across the mega-building and gathered on the floor. With their slow trudge it would take a while. Only about ten percent had arrived.
Anubis stretched out his senses. He could detect those who were infected by the Chimera Strain like Kat. Unlike her, he couldn't sense the H-Chies. Anubis didn't even know they existed. So he didn't worry about missing xombions or the possible repercussions they might bring upon him and his horde. "How long before they're all here?" Anubis wondered. "How long before all my children have assembled for our battle to come? Those who are here now were already on the lower levels. The ones we started with on the higher levels are still hours away. So how long?"
Minutes went by and Anubis thought of something else. "And that Katharine woman, the Rushlight..." He focused his mind to isolate one infected signature among thousands. He searched for a signal the body emitted that was unique to each individual kissed by the super-virus. Good thing for him, her Chimera Strain Fingerprint was strong, shouted I'm Here! Well maybe not so good. "Puck! She isn't dead. Somehow she was able to escape my children. No. Not escape. She was able to defeat the ones I left behind to kill her. Those xombions are still up there, and they aren't heeding my call to gather. They're too damaged to do so. I don't understand. How? How could she defeat so many? The numbers should have overwhelmed her."
"How are you going to do that?" Jacob asked, interrupting Anubis' thoughts.
"Do what? Kill the Rushlight?"
"No." Jacob's worries were single-minded. Before he had cared about other people, if they died or lived. Now... Now his only concerns were about his own survival. "I don't care about that. How are you going to keep me safe during a fire fight? And don't you have another problem?"
"You're going to watch the battle from the safety of a Security Station–" Anubis pointed to a camera mounted on the wall above. "–that way the machines will be in harm's way and not you. As for your second question, what's my other problem?"
"From our previous conversation, that is if I understand it..." Jacob said to him. "You're wanting to spread the contagion across Noir. But if I understand the Chimera Strain correctly, there's one snag in that plan."
Anubis waded through his children and moved closer to the gimp and his Guardians. "What do you mean?"
"The Closing Of Days loop, the music you keep referring to... Don't you need it to complete the infection?" Jacob pushed one of the Guardian-mutations to the side so he could directly talk to Anubis. "And how are you going to set up a video room so that I can watch the feed? None of your xombions really look computer savvy."
"I've already thought of a solution to both of those questions." Anubis grinned like some wolf who had found a baby lamb standing all alone. "Some time ago, I created another hybrid to help out. It was very clever on my part. Very clever indeed."
"Another hybrid? I don't understand. What can another hybrid do..."
Anubis interrupted, "My HandOfTheGods has improved greatly with the passing of time. I'm a complete genius, a pure brainiac." He placed a hand to his chest. "Not to puff myself up too much."
"Too late," Jacob mumbled.
"What did you say?"
"Nothing of importance. You were saying you created a new hybrid?"
"Yes and here they come now." Anubis turned and looked to the exit. "You'll understand my brilliance when you see them."
Small round creatures waddled in from the exit and dispersed through the crowd. They couldn't be called men or women because they had no sex identifiers just like the Frogga-mutations. They also looked alike as if they'd been cloned from the same weird organism from outer space. They were about four foot tall and as wide. They reminded Jacob of a donut, a donut that walked around like a duck. They seemed to quack every once in a while. There was a hole through the center of their chest about two foot in diameter. The hole wasn't like a wound where bone, organs, and flesh hung into it. It was more like their body naturally formed the aperture. Their faces were elf-like, but not jolly like the ones he had seen in commercials. They didn't seem to express any emotions like the other xombions. They had a bob hair cut and they all seemed to be wearing the same black and white striped jumpsuit. Jacob then realized that the jumpsuit wasn't clothing but their skin. They were naked. He made a face as he counted forty of them and more were coming.
"What happened to their chest?" Jacob questioned. "It's like a canon ball was shot through them."
"Do you like them? They're Mimic-mutations. The second ones I've named. If the author of the Chimera Strain reports believes my creations need names, I should be the one to name the rest of them." Anubis had earlier gotten his hands on a H.H.C. and viewed the reports from the unknown author. He liked the names and adopted them.
"Rest of them? You've created more hybrids?"
"No, not yet, but I imagine I'll create many classes within the xombions that specialize in one thing or another." Anubis looked over his diverse children. "Yes, I'll create many classes with my HandOfTheGods."
"You keep referring to this HandOfTheGods. So demon, do you see yourself as a god?"
"A god? No. I see myself as god among gods. I'm more powerful than Zeus himself!"
"You're more delusional than I thought," Jacob muttered and asked, "What do these Mimics specialize in?"
"I encoded in their basic makeup the Closing Of Days loop, and they mimic the sound constantly with their specialized vocal cords. Their bodies then act as an amplifier." Anubis closed his eyes, listening to the third element of the Chimera Strain. "Can you hear it?"
"Hear it?"
"Yes. Can you perceive the Closing Of Days music booming through the very marrow of your bones? Can you feel it pulsating through your blood? Can you detect it calling to you?"
Jacob strained his ears. "No. I don't hear or feel anything."
Anubis pointed to one of the Mimic-mutations. "Go. Stand before the witness."
The Mimic didn't hesitate and moved toward him.
The Guardian-mutations noticed the hybrid and started to react.
"No!" Anubis commanded with his resonating voice. "Do not hinder the Mimic."
The Guardians looked to the new hybrid, to each other, and back to the waddling creature. They weren't sure what to do. The master commanded them, but their programed instincts to protect were screaming at them to stop the Mimic. They resisted for now and stood as plastic soldiers.
The Mimic stopped a few feet from the wall of bald hybrids.
Jacob stared at the donut-duck. "I still don't hear anything."
"Increase volume," Anubis ordered.
The one Mimic's body vibrated as it increased volume. Jacob's face contorted as he heard the horrible noise. "This isn't music... It's... It's..." As the horrendous grinding of sound grew louder, he put his hands over his ears. "This is awful! Okay, I can hear it. Turn it back down. Turn it down! I can't hear myself screaming!!"
"That's enough!" Anubis shouted. "Return the volume to normal. Now gather with the others."
The Mimic-mutation turned and joined the flood of decaying bodies.
"So you see how I solved the problem with the loop. Even if Sphinx is able to find the original and destroy it. It's too late. There are already over fifty replicas. At least two Mimics will travel with a Pod and as my minions infect others with their blood, the loop's there to complete the transformation."
"Okay, I'll have to admit, it seems you've solved the problem. But how do these things help me with the video camera?" Jacob asked.
"They can attach themselves to electronics, bond with wiring and mechanisms, and make the device do its will, or more like my will. I'll have two Mimic-mutations accompany you and the Guardians. Like the Guardians, the new infected do not have the desire of the Hunger. If the need arises they'll infect to keep their numbers up."
Jacob questioned, "Now what?"
"Now we need to find you a Security Station and have one of the Mimics link it to the cameras in the Main Lobby. Wait..." Anubis listened to the Hive Cognizance as one of his children reported in. He filtered through the bumbled thoughts of the xombions and found the one calling out to him. "One of my Sepio-mutations has found an old Security Station nearby. It's perfect for what you'll need it for."
"Y-a-y..." Jacob uttered unmotivated and glanced at the Mimic-mutations, asking, "Will these things obey me like the Guardians?"
"Yes, but only the two I'll send with you. Go, take your mini-army and continue through the corridor. If the Sepio-mutation is correct, the Mimics should have the old station up and running in an hour or so."
Jacob asked, "What are you going to do?"
"I'm going to start arranging my pieces on the chess board. I'd like to get this battle going before lunch. Though... The more I think about the upcoming battle and the Rushlight the more I..."
"Remember how she kicked your butt?" Jacob questioned.
"No..." Anubis glared at him. "I wasn't thinking about that." Anubis remembered the sensations he experienced. In a way, she had rocked his world, but without sexual intercourse. "The Rushlight and me, we connected on some level. It's hard to explain. It was unlike anything I'd experienced before. And I think I'd like another hit. But that would mean..."
Jacob interrupted again, "That would mean not killing her on sight. Or should I say, her not killing you on sight."
"Sometimes–" Anubis envisioned himself popping off his head. "–I wonder why I keep you around."
Jacob thought, "Sometimes I wish you had killed me."
Chapter Three
Why She Is Called Pandora?
-9:34 A.M.-
On the staircase between Level 17 and 18...
Smoke filled the stairwell as Kat, burdened with grief, traveled down the endless steps. The heat of Level 13 no longer lapped at her skin, but the intense heat of her wrath dominated her thoughts and emotions. She continued her descent to where she knew Anubis and his minions gathered. Kat sensed the Chimera Strain within them. She didn't know what kind of connection she had with it, but she knew there was one. With the connection, she could locate anyone with the infection.
Kat sent out the call for all H-Chies to assemble with her. “We'll eliminate the fake master, transform or destroy the xombions, and we'll restore the Twilight to the path that will bring about the Closing Of Days.” Her rantings reverberated and fueled her dark determination. “Yes, I'll make the Jackal of Death pay. After all, Anubis and his minions are at fault. They're... They're the ones who first brought death to the building. Not me.” She focused on her hatred, the only thing that was keeping her going, moving, and functioning. “Yes, I'll make him pay. This time I'll rip out his heart and make him eat it!” Without it, without the malignity toward Anubis, who was only a small factor in the ill-fated equation that led to Kim's demise, without it she would curl up and die.
With each step she took, the rage within her compacted like scorching molten rock gathering into a magma chamber. Devastating pressure like rotting emotions accumulated and pressed against her psyche. Any moment, her fury would erupt, yielding over 500 megatons of TNT. Her madness would shoot out choking hate-filled smoke, smothering seething ash, and flesh-burning malevolent lava. And as Mount Vesuvius was to Pompeii, she would blanket the world in darkness, she would snuff out all life, and Kat would bring an end to all things.
"I'm coming for you, Anubis! I'm coming for you. And this time I won't hesitate. There's no more mercy within me. You're dead!!"
Kat left a wake of flaming walls on the higher floors as the Accursed EFP (e-field pulse) continued to uncontrollably release from her body in small shockwaves about ten feet in circumference. She didn't care and didn't even seem to notice them anymore, caught up in her jackal-hunt. The pulses discharged every three minutes or so and shot through the walls and started fires in connecting rooms and hallways. Her eyes combusted with the black Ultra-Epi Light Emissions. The Ult L-E neared its final stage. The dark light emitting from her eyes absorbed the rest of the spectrum surrounding it like imploded electromagnetic radiation, like a spectrum black hole. (Black holes were an extremely dense celestial object whose gravitational field was so strong that not even light can escape from its vicinity. With a spectrum black hole, the black Ult L-E absorbed, or maybe devoured was a better term, all other light spectrums, adding to its own power.)
The Residual Ult L-E Scarring dyed her hair and nails ebony, and that along with her eyes, made Kat appear as dead. She and the H-Chies were different from the xombions. Their bodies were not dead. And in Kat's case, was never clinically dead.
"Come, H-Chies. Gather with me. We bring war to Anubis. We bring freedom to the xombions who are trapped in his twisted vision of the Twilight."
The rebuilt winged dragon that had bonded with her inner core was ecstatic. Victory was theirs. They would show the world their heartache and their sorrow. And everything would burn.
"My dear, " Ginn had persistently talked to her since Kat had left Level 13. "Listen to me. You must stop what you are doing."
"No. I'll destroy everything. There's nothing you can say or do to change my mind. There's nothing anyone can say or do." Her rage made her blind. “There's no one left that I care about.”
"I do not want you to change your mind. I want you to embrace this moment and remember the hatred fuming within you. I want you to see the darkness that is within yourself. Do you understand?"
His badgering was starting to annoy her. "Do I understand? Do I understand?! Yes, I understand! I'm a monster. I'm a fiend from the nightmare world. What more is there to embrace? I've destroyed everything I've ever cared about. I have seized my dark side and embraced it as if it were the mother I can't remember. So don't tell me to envelop the darkness. It has consumed my heart, soul, and mind."
“Then let me ask you a question. Do you know why you are called Pandora?"
"What?!" She stopped mid-step and glanced around as if looking for the invisible voice.
"I asked if you know why you are called Pandora."
She narrowed her eyes and the crackling black electricity clawed at the air. "Are you trying to make me mad? Are you testing whether or not I'll become angry enough to come after you? Find you in whatever time and place you are hiding?"
"No. Do you know that the woman you are named after has two different versions of her tale? She or you can either bring destruction to the world or you can bring..."
“Hope?" Kat laughed. "What hope can I bring now? There's no hope for me. No hope for this planet.”
"That my dear, all depends on you. What path shall you take?"
"What path?! Can't you see the fiery one I'm already on? That I have already chosen? Are you blind? Or can you just not see from whatever repulsive hole you're communicating from?" Tears continued to streak down her cheeks, marking her skin crimson and sable. "Are you saying there's redemption for me? That I can be forgiven? That God, who would have allowed something like me to exist, can forgive me?" She shook her head. "No. He wouldn't. I won't allow Him to. My sins are too great. There's no salvation."
"The salvation God offers is not what I am talking about. If it were, I would tell you, you are not beyond it."
"If forgiveness isn't what you're referring to, then what are you talking about?"
Ginn questioned, "Do you understand the choices you have made? Do you understand where they have led you?"
"Why do you speak in riddles?!" she yelled. "Your questions are confusing and that's making me mad!"
Ginn stated, "Then you do not understand."
"Understand what?! Tell me! Stop talking cryptic!"
"I want to make sure you clearly see the path you are taking. Can you see the end? Can you see the destination?"
"Yes!" She glanced behind herself at the inferno. "I'm going to destroy everything."
"Then you have seen enough. You can..."
"Seen enough?!" Kat interrupted. "I've seen too much!!" She looked at her palms. "With these hands I've killed Stephanie as if she had no more worth than something stuck to the bottom of my shoe. And with these hands I've... I've...” She clasped her blue t-shirt over her heart. “I can't.”
“You cannot what?” Ginn asked.
“I can't go on living like this. Not when I know I'm a monster. Not knowing that I killed her. That I killed Kimberly.”
“I understand it hurts. And that is good.”
“Good? Good?! How can that be good?”
“It is good because most likely you shall not repeat your mistakes. You shall...”
“Mistakes?! That's what you call murder?! I took Kimberly's life! I took her future away because I couldn't control the anger that is swarming within me! And you call that a mistake?!”
“Yes. Remember you can learn from your mistakes. Learn from that one, and the first one you made by killing Stephanie.”
“Learn from them? Both of them are burned into my memory. Every word and action. And you want me to learn from...”
“Maybe you are not understanding me,” Ginn interrupted. “I want you to...”
“Shut up! Who are you to tell me to do anything? Where were you when I snapped Stephanie's neck? Where were you when I shoved... When I pushed...” Kat couldn't bring herself to say it. “Where were you? Why didn't you stop me?”
“Like I have been trying to tell you. I wanted you to see and experience...”
“No! No! What kind of thing is that to say? Why would you want me to kill my best friend? Why would you want me to hurt anyone?”
“If there was another way, I would have done it. But you had to see. You had to see what you would do if you could not control the rage that is within you. Now you have the knowledge. Now you have gained the wisdom. And now it is time that you left this world.”
“You want me to take my own life? Is that possible?" She calmed herself a bit, thinking of the possibility. "If bullets can't kill me, then what can? How can I...”
“Ending your life is not what I meant. But it is a good analogy. You need to put this world to an end. You need to destroy your existence in it.”
“What? Are you mad? Or is it me? Have I finally gone mad? You are, after all, a voice in my head. You're mad! Mad!!”
Ginn insisted, “You have to listen to me!”
“Why?!”
“It is time to stop walking this path, this possible path of the subconscious.”
“What?! What are you talking about?”
“Maybe this shall help. It is a few lines I have heard you quote. You quoted them when you were a child less than ten years of age. Listen my dear. It is a quote from the works of a man named Herbert. 'A person needs new experiences. They jar something deep inside, allowing him to grow. Without change, something inside us sleeps, and seldom awakens. The sleeper must awaken.' ”
“Sleeper? What are you saying? Are you saying I'm asleep?”
“Yes. If you remember, I had told you to close your eyes. Clear your thoughts. Give yourself time to step out of the moment. Concentrate on the future. You must understand what you might do if you lose total control."
"Yes I remember. That was over an hour ago."
"You still do not understand. Time exists differently here. The here that is within your mind. In the real world, only a few seconds have gone by."
"A few seconds? Huh?"
"With the abilities you have now, you were able to create within your mind a possible future. I am sorry, but I did not realize how real it would seem to you. I did not realize you would believe that you were in reality. I should have pulled you out sooner, but you had to see. You had to experience what you were capable of. It is time to wake.”
“Wake. I need to wake up?” Kat said.
She then thought, “Wake up. Wake up!”
8:37 A.M...
Kat opened her dark eyes. She stood in the Play Room. She stood in a Play Room that wasn't on fire. She searched the room and didn't find Kimberly or Stephanie's bodies. Kat stood alone in the room.
“Was everything a dream?” she asked after a few minutes.
“More like a possible reality,” Ginn answered. “My time with you has again come to an end. I shall explain things more once I am able to contact you again. Remember, the vision you saw is a possible future. You must guide yourself down a different path. One that does not lead to the Twilight. Be warned though... If you cannot get your rage under control what you have seen shall happen.”
"Wait! Don't go! Ginn! Ginn?"
He didn't answer her as Kat stared at the empty Play Room. “Was it really only a dream, a horrible vision of what could happen? If that is true then... then...”
A knock at the door interrupted her thoughts.
Slowly, Kat made her way to it and turned the knob.
Chapter Four
The Witness And Other Goings On Within Sphinx
Part One
8:43 A.M...
Level 300...
The excited laments of the Common Xombions, the worked up chit-chit-chit-chit of the Adder-mutations, the enthusiastic shrills of the Sepio-mutations, and the boisterous croaking of the Frogga-mutations filled the corridor behind Jacob. He and his merry band of freakish hybrid-flunkies left the enormous Pod forming around Anubis. Unlike when he traveled with Anubis, Jacob led the way. It made him feel commanding, important to the new world Anubis would bring, but it also frightened him to his very core.
"Once I'm done witnessing the A.X. (Age of Xombions) come to pass, what will happen to me? Will I have a place in the hellspawn-metropolis? Or will the demon turn me into one of his undead servants?" He thought about stopping and rubbing his sore leg, but continued. Jacob wanted to get far away from him as soon as possible. "Either way, I think I'm screwed. And I still don't understand one important point... Once the Twilight is all spoken and finished, who do I tell what I saw? The xombions? I don't think they'll really care about their past. It isn't like little xombion children will go to school and learn about world xombion history. I can see it now. A classroom full of Commons, Adders, Sepios, and maybe–" He motioned to the hybrids with him. "–even a few of your children. Yes I can see it now, small drooling decaying freaks all sitting around in desks looking up at a teacher in the front. She'll moan, A.X. 1-50 was the platinum age, the age of creation. A.X. 51-251 the rein and glorious years of Anubis the First, the great demon lord and creator of the world. He was succeeded by Anubis II, son and heir to the kingdom. Blah... Blah... Moan... Moan..."
He wondered, "So what will you guys do when there's no one else to infect?"
The Guardian-mutations stayed close, uncomfortably close for him. And the two Mimic-mutations walked behind them. Anubis had given Jacob a blood caked H.H.C. with schematics of the floor. They traveled for some time and then turned right then left down a few hallways. They walked the same trail four or five more times just through different corridors. After about twenty minutes, he stopped and as if linked with his mind, the hybrids did the same at the very same moment.
He glanced back at them. “We should start a chorus line. Or better yet...” The suffocating madness that had slowly affected him like someone pressing down on his face with a pillow, finally got to him and Jacob snapped. He sang, “Come on boys, follow me.” He moved his shoe forward. “You put your right foot in.” All of them did the same. He moved his shoe back and ditto. “You put your right foot out–” He pointed his finger up and shook it. “–and you wiggle it all about. You do the toecky-choecky and you whirl it all around.” He turned in a circle, and they did the same. “And that's what it's all about.” He did a few more of the moves and laughed his head off. He laughed so hard tears came to his eyes (at least that's what he told himself) and he wiped them away. The whole bizarre dance took about ten minutes. Jacob breathed heavily after they had stopped and leaned against a wall. “Next time–” He took a few more deep breaths. “–we'll do the Conga.” He rested a few more minutes then remembered what he was supposed to be doing. “That's right.” Jacob turned to the door. "I think this is it." He pushed his way through two muscle-heads, opened it, and glanced inside. "Yes, we're here. This is the old Security Station. Let's go in."
Inside was an area set up with monitors and other equipment. Most of the machines appeared to be out dated. "It looks like this place hasn't been used in years.” He saw that old video tapes marked with calendar days predating the Dry Clouds filled several shelves. “Maybe decades.”
The twelve Guardians filed into the medium sized room. Two of the steel colored gladiators remained with him while the others stayed by the door. Even with all of the xombions in there, there was still room to move about without feeling cramped. The two Mimic-mutations also came in.
The air had an odd smell to it. Jacob thought he kind of recognized the odor and walked over to a trash can. A half eaten petrified slice of pizza sat on a plate along with other paper trash. "It's mutant-millennium pepperoni, I think. Ahh... Is that hair on it or a dead mouse? Ahh... I think it just moved. I mean the pizza.” He put a hand to his mouth as the rancidness hit him again. “I think I'm going to vomit." Through his covered mouth, he ordered, "Someone take this thing out of the room and get rid of it."
One of the ten Guardians standing near the door came and grabbed the can as if it was an unruly xombion. The hybrid crumpled the metal in its hands till it formed what looked like a giant paper ball. He walked to the exit and after opening the door, he chucked the waste receptacle. The can smashed into the wall across the corridor and imbedded into the plaster.
While the Guardian disposed of his annoyance, Jacob went and sat in a computer chair at the console with the multiple monitors. He looked at all the knobs and buttons. "Okay.” He turned to the Mimics. “Now what?"
They went and stood one on each end of the console. The small hybrids continuously played Arcamedes' Cacophony, but the volume was set so low he couldn't hear it. At the same time, the Mimics grabbed a hold of the console with both hands. They stared at one another like Un-Men who had just powered up and were using their I-Link to communicate. The Mimics then nodded to each other. They opened their mouths as if to speak, but nothing came out, at least nothing Jacob heard. He could see inside their mutated oral cavity, and he saw an enlarged tonsil shaped like a fleshy lifesaver. The mass of lymphoid tissue was a mini version of their bodies. Their tonsils vibrated and what looked like tiny hairs crisscrossed within the circle moved and positioned themselves as if pointing out of the mouth. Jacob had no clue why they sang a mute opera and glanced at the two Guardians who cared less that the Mimics were lip-syncing aphonic lyrics as long as they didn't try to hurt him. The Mimics pointed their mouths up and down and back and forth across the console as if scanning it.
"What are they doing?" Jacob questioned out loud. "It's almost like they're using ground penetrating radar to get the layout of the components."
After a few minutes, the Mimics closed their mouths. They tightened their grip on the console and then all ten of their death-colored periwinkle nails popped up like car trunks.
Jacob cringed. "Ohh... That's got to hurt. Ahh..." He shook his own hands as if it had happened to him. "That's really got to hurt."
What looked like putrid-pomegranate veins crept from the Mimics' fingertips and moved across the console. The vein-vines spread as if they were some sort of mutant plant growing at a super rate. The vein-vines crept into the equipment and wiring, grafting to the components.
Jacob's mouth dropped, and he pushed his chair back from the console. None of the Guardians moved.
"That's kind of disgusting. The demon said you would attach yourselves to electronics, bond with wiring and mechanisms, and make the device do your will, but I thought he meant you would do it by just touching it. Oh... That's gross. What's dripping from your... your veins?"
They secreted a sticky like substance that adhered the vein-vines to the components. The Mimics had higher bio-electricity than normal living things. With their electromagnetic field, they tapped into the video feed of the targeted security cameras. The monitors on the console came to life and showed live feeds of the Main Lobby. There were ten different cameras.
Jacob pulled his chair back to the console. "There are a whole lot of soldiers there. But is it enough to stop the demon?" He glanced at the Mimics then to the two Guardians standing near him. "You aren't going to tell Anubis I said that, are you? Whose side are you on anyway?"
The hybrids gave no hint that they would or would not or that they even understood the question.
"If you're suppose to obey me, I order you not to. Do you understand? Don't tell the demon..." Jacob glanced at them. "Never mind, what do I care if Anubis finds out. Tell him for all I care."
The hybrids again didn't react.
"Oh for the love of Patty! None of you are going to be good company are you? I wish at least one of you would talk. Or I think I'm going to go crazy."
A deep booming voice answered his rantings, "What do you want me to say?"
Startled by the interruption to his babbling, Jacob slowly turned to the Guardian on his right. "Did you talk?"
The Guardian looked at him with its eerie blue eyes. "Yes. I asked you what you wanted me to say."
"Ahh..." Jacob didn't know how to answer and stared at him for a while. "I'm not sure. Umm... Do you know where Anubis and his children are?"
The Guardian paused, connecting to the Hive Cognizance. "They are still gathering on this floor."
"Umm... Thanks? I think. Can you tell me what Anubis is planning on doing?"
"There is no plan yet for the majority of the children, only to gather. Anubis has sent out several dozen Frogga-mutations to scout the floors above the Main Lobby. Wait... There is something new." The Guardian listened as Anubis spoke to all his creations. "Anubis is planning on starting with an all out assault. He is going to send the Commons to the Main Lobby supported by a few hybrids. He believes it will be a good distraction."
Jacob spoke to the hybrid as if he were his first officer, and he the captain of a battle ship. "A good distraction for what?"
"Anubis has experimented with one of the hybrids and found out something very unusual. Something that will swing the war vastly in his favor. So the Commons will be a very good distraction so that the master can implement the new strategy."
"What?! So soon?" Jacob uttered. "Not enough time has passed. I thought he was going to wait for all the xombions to assemble."
The Guardian tilted his head. "He was, but decided he should not wait. He decided that this opportunity should be snatched while the snatching is good."
Jacob grumbled, "Whatever that means?"
"He believes his secret weapon will not remain secret forever. So he wants to strike before they figure out what he has planned."
Jacob turned to the monitors as one of the cameras showed the Chairman talking with one of the S.C.Ms. "If you can tell me where the demon is and his plans, maybe... Maybe I'm not useless. You..." He pointed to one of the Mimics. "I want to communicate with that man on the video." He tapped one of the monitor's screens. "Can you set it up so I can do so?"
The Mimic peered at the monitor he pointed to, noticed the man on the screen, looked back to Jacob, and nodded.
"Then do it as quickly as possible. I'd like to talk to the Chairman. I pray I'm in time."
The Mimic went to work.
Jacob glanced at the Guardian who could talk. "You guys really freak me out, but if I can use you... You can all be my best buds."
The Guardian blinked several times at his comment. "We are yours to use. So we are best buds."
* * *
8:21 A.M...
Level 370...
Most of the hundred Furies under Lieutenant Matthews fortified the Main Lobby with sandbags. They formed a line across the middle of the large entrance. The five foot wall was positioned about five yards in front of Sentry Post Prime. Soldiers manned large caliber machine guns that were aimed at the elevators and stairs. This was the front line. The line that divided Anubis' forces and the Chairman's.
Matthews stood in the middle of the S.C.Ms. and scanned over the soldiers as they finished last minute preparations. He was a stout man, sporting a short mohawk. Matthews watched a few soldiers stack ammo boxes along the line as he thought, "This war won't be easy. The Chairman will have to fight two fronts. Pucking Orthos! I hate pucking Turncoats!"
The Furies, along with the other S.C.Ms., were fitted with military issued bio-hazard gear. The gear consisted of a Bio-hazard Winnow Mask or WM-BioZ and protective gloves. They added body armor to protect themselves from teeth, claws, and stingers. All of the S.C.Ms. knew they could be easily infected if any of the xombions' blood mixed with theirs. Everyone was tense, waiting on the inevitable invasion.
On the other side of the sandbag wall, the Chairman stood by Sentry Post Prime. The five sentries who usually manned it had long since been reassigned outside among the tents. Four heavily armed S.C.Ms. stood close as the Chairman's personal guards. They had taken over the role from Joe and his Security Detail. The Chairman had earlier removed his business suit and now donned the jet-black military uniform and a cap. He bore no insignia that marked his rank only a gold olive tree with three branches was pinned to his collar. A holstered Glock rested on his hip.
He contemplated many things. "My Head of Security... Do you want my position so badly you would prefer to kill me instead of wait for your promotion? I see your ambitions are loftier. I see that you want the very pentacle." So many complications weighed heavily on the Chairman. "At least Orthos won't have it easy either," he thought. "He'll also have to contend with the xombions, unless he has some sort of plan to use them. Hades! What if he was the one who created the Chimera Strain? What if Anubis and the xombions are his grand plan? Hades! I should have been more vigilant. I should have suspected he was up to something. Then I could have dealt with the matter swiftly and decisively."
Behind the Furies that were lined up against the sandbags stood what remained of the Proto-Android Squads for support. The seven foot robots stood ready as they continuously scanned the area for infected. The barrels of the fifteen Proto-Androids' Forearm Guns pointed at the elevator and stair area as they waited to engage the xombions. They were poised as metallic sculptures, war machines of art. The units were Proto-1 through 5 and Proto-11 through 20.
Matthews walked to the Chairman.
"Any word?" the Chairman questioned.
Matthews reported, “No word on your daughters or from Captain Creed.”
The Chairman thought, "I wish the captain would contact me. I want to know if they have come across Kimberly and Stephanie. Why hasn't he called?"
He inquired, "What about Orthos and the coup?"
Matthews replied, "The A.I.R. (Atmosphere Intercept Regiment were soldiers trained to work in the Dry Clouds for extraction and infiltration missions.) we sent in by chopper successfully landed on the roof and entered Level 1 twenty minutes ago. A few minutes after that, they reported they were taking fire from the Turncoats. We lost communication with them about five minutes ago."
“So the battle for the Third Branch Office has started.” The Chairman turned and scanned over his army.
Matthews questioned, "Do you want me to send in a couple more Units?"
"No." The Chairman faced him. "Most likely Orthos has positioned Anti-A.I.R. on the roof to shoot down anymore helicopters we send in. We'll need to formulate a new plan. We know Orthos has at least a fifth of the S.C.Ms. and security personnel on his side."
"Actually, sir. All of our reservists are in. We have a good estimate of the numbers now. Orthos almost has a third of the armed personnel."
"It's worse than I thought." The Chairman questioned, "What of the Scout Rats? What intel have they collected?"
"Anubis is still gathering on Level 300. One of the Rat Scouts was caught by an Anti-surveillance Dog Soldier so we know Orthos is onto our surveillance."
"So we have started our cat and mouse game. We..."
"Actually sir," Matthews interrupted. "It would be dog and rat."
"I stand corrected. Though by the end of the day, it might be a zoo in here. Dogs, cats, and rats will be the least of our worries." He lifted his H.H.C. and scanned over the incoming reports. “Have our sister branches received our request for additional support? I would like to know they're ready if we should need their assistance.”
Matthews answered, "The Main Branch responded and has several Units standing by. The Second Branch hasn't responded."
"So the Vice President is holding out on us, or is Horus waiting to see what side will be victorious and throw his lot in with them?"
"Don't know sir. It could be as simple as..."
"Please," the Chairman interrupted. "Anything pertaining to the Vice President is never simple."
"Of course sir." Matthews' H.H.C. beeped, and he glanced over the message. "We have a new figure for Anubis' xombions. There are over 3000."
The Chairman turned to the Furies positioned behind the sandbag wall along with the extra two hundred S.C.Ms. they brought in for support. "There's no more room to bring in additional Units within the Main Lobby. An all out attack would overrun our forces, but the terrain is in our favor. The attacking force has to exit the elevator and stair area. It gives Anubis a small area to enter and that will be our opportunity to gun down the infected before they become an unstoppable force. I for one, am not a man who depends on the predictable. So, I want you to set up a second and third line to fall back to. Also, have the Main Branch go ahead and send over the Units they have set aside for us."
"Yes, sir." Matthews waved over two Furies, and once the soldiers arrived, ordered them, "Sergeant Tomkins, you'll be in charge of our second line. Bring in twenty S.C.M. Units to man it. Sandbag another wall on the Garden Deck and set it up so that you utilize the large cement Transgenic planters." Matthews then spoke to the other soldier. "Sergeant Batmill, you'll create a third line for us to fall back to. You'll set up your line twenty feet from the bottom of the Garden Deck's stairs. You'll have forty Units man this line. When the Main Branch Office's Units arrive you'll add them to the line. And since we have more room down there set up eight Minigun Teams. Any questions?"