Rooms, Page 22

  They picked up a small backpack of supplies that they had stashed there several days earlier. Inside was some clothing and other items that they would need that night. They took off the clothes that they had on and changed into camouflaged outfits that were darker in color. They also covered their faces with black, soot-darkened oil. There had been a great deal of debate about how they should enter the Shelter, including a suggestion that they simply walk up to the main entrance and nonchalantly enter using Sparks’ entrance pad, but in the final analysis, they had decided to do it as quietly and unobtrusively as possible with the aid of a small diversion. They didn’t want to take any chances of someone wondering who Rad and Zeer were.

  They started walking down a path that would keep them as unexposed as possible and walked slowly on soft-soled shoes, moving closer and closer to the outside wall of the Shelter.

  Rad had already been given the full dose of the medication by Sparks. He felt a little light-headed, but other than that, it was doing its job. He felt much better and even moved more easily.

  Sparks whispered, “Okay, we’re close enough to the lights from the Shelter now to be spotted. Let’s stop here and wait. We’ll be able to get inside easily once Silas does his job.”

  They waited there a moment, and then Sparks saw him and pointed him out. “There he is, behind that rock.”

  Rad and Zeer looked and saw a large boulder about twenty meters from the door. From their angle, they could see Silas kneeling behind it, waiting for the signal. Sparks crawled gingerly in Silas’s direction, caught his attention, and gave him a thumbs up sign.

  Silas waited for a couple more minutes, watching for the guard to face his way. At that moment, he stood up behind the rock and started walking towards the guard. Silas made enough noise that the guard noticed him almost immediately. He was acting like he was trying to sneak up on the guard.

  The guard yelled, “Who are you? What the hell are you doing here, Pariah?”

  Silas threw a rock, hitting the guard in the leg. “You stupid bastard, don’t call me a Pariah!” The guard yanked his laser pistol out of its case and fired, but Silas was already on the run. The shot missed him and glanced off the boulder. He was chosen for this task specifically because of his agility and the accuracy of his throwing arm. He zigzagged up a path back into the city; the guard hollered and ran after him, continuing to fire his weapon. Silas had a good start and looked like he’d be okay, but the three knew they couldn’t depend on the guard being gone very long.

  They ran toward the entrance in an oblique fashion, skirting the wall as closely as possible. A small whole in the wall about three meters up was where the surveillance camera was located. They stood below it. Sparks cradled Zeer’s foot in his hands and helped her shinny up the wall. In her hand was a small container of the same dark oil that they’d used on their faces. She was able to spray it on to the lens of the camera, not entirely blacking it out but making it darker and much more opaque. Sparks then helped Zeer down, and they walked carefully towards the entry door. Sparks pushed the button on his pad. It beeped, and they entered the Shelter. Rushing through the decontamination area, they made their way, not to Sparks’ flat, but to Gwen’s. It was much closer to the entrance than his, and she had given him entry privileges. Sparks knew that Gwen would not be home very early that evening, so he’d chosen her flat for their first stop.

  Once inside, Rad heaved a sigh of relief and said, “Well, we’ve made it this far. Let’s check the backpack one more time to make sure we have what we need before we clean up and change.”

  Everything seemed to be there, so they washed their faces and changed into the clothes that Sparks had hidden in Gwen’s place earlier in the week. This would allow them to avoid drawing attention to themselves once they left her flat.

  Zeer looked up at how all of them were dressed and couldn’t help but laugh a little. “We all look a bit pretentious, don’t you think?” They glanced at each other, and the other two joined in on the laughter. Rad had gold sparkles on his shirt and a golden chain on his bare chest. Sparks’ clothes were obviously expensive - the rich colors bringing even more amusement as he strutted dramatically around the room. Zeer had on a short black dress that showed off her beautiful body, and she had jewels around her neck and in her hair. She had her hand on her hip and was modeling for the boys. It was a moment that they needed before leaving the flat. Sparks and Rad looked at Zeer and commented at the same time. “Wow!”

  “Won’t these clothes bring more attention to us, though?” Rad asked.

  Sparks spoke confidently, “You’d think so, wouldn’t you, but no. You’ll see when we walk out. We’ll blend in fine. Hopefully we won’t see very many people, though. We’ll be staying in the hallways, not out in the main areas where more people might be gathered. Also, it’s early enough that people won’t be returning to their flats yet. There’s supposed to be a big meeting tonight in the main hall. It’s about the departure in two days. That should help, too.”

  Next, they hid the few tools that they had inside their clothing, collectively took a deep breath, and walked out into the corridor. The hall was not brightly lit with only small lights glowing above each door. The floor was carpeted, and as they traveled along, Rad and Zeer realized how expansive even this small section of the Shelter was. The hallways were like a maze with doors on each side. They were happy that they had Sparks to guide them. If it had been left up to them, they could have easily become disoriented and lost.

  Sparks led the way, greeting the few people that they encountered. Rad and Zeer watched and listened to Sparks and carefully emulated his mannerisms. So far their journey to the central computer core had been uneventful, and that’s the way they wanted to keep it.

  As planned, they remained in the hallways, and at intervals, seemed to be spiraling down to lower and lower levels until they reached a locked door at the end of one of the corridors. Sparks tried the door. As he knew it would be, it was locked, but there was no guard. Often times, one was posted there, but not tonight. So far, all of the preparation was panning out. He pulled out a tool from his pocket, flicked it on, and shined the light on the panel by the door. They saw the panel flicker and could hear several small clicks. The door clicked open slightly. Sparks seemed relieved as he tilted his head and blew out a small amount of air. Then he held up his index finger perpendicular to his lips for silence and opened the door, just a little more, glancing through the crack into the room beyond.

  At that moment, they all heard footsteps on the other side. Sparks, as swiftly and quietly as he could, closed the door without latching it. The three stood motionless, breathing in soft quick breaths, their hearts pounding. Sparks waited until the footsteps had diminished and then cracked the door just enough to allow a another quick glance. He mouthed, “He’s gone,” and nodded Rad and Zeer forward.

  They slid through the opening onto a platform with a railing. The platform circumscribed about three quarters of the big room. Its surface was made of metal grating with small one-inch square holes. Looking down through the grating, they could see the room below. It was circular and much better lit than where they stood. The floor was made of concrete, and the walls were composed of cold, gray metal. Zeer took off her shoes in order to be able to walk more easily on the platform without making noise or catching a heel.

  They could now see the man who’d passed by. He was walking away from them along the curved platform and had come to a staircase. He walked down the steps to the large room below. His footsteps echoed off the hard surfaces, and when he reached the bottom, they could hear him talking to someone. Sparks took a chance and stepped quietly to the railing, glanced over, and returned. He held up two fingers and gave a small smile. Again, thankfully, he had been correct about there being less security.

  Hugging the wall away from the railing and the brightly lit room below, they started to move very slowly and cautiously along it. From this point on, it became very tricky to keep from being detected.
All the guards had to do was look up from where they were standing and notice movement in the shadows. They were very exposed.

  Then Sparks stopped for a moment and spoke almost inaudibly. “We need to get to that door. That one…” and he pointed towards the far end of the platform.

  Rad and Zeer followed him, plastering themselves against the wall and moving as noiselessly and cautiously as possible. They were getting close to the door when Rad felt a cough tickling his lungs. He grabbed onto Sparks shoulder with one hand to let him know that he was in trouble. With the other, he quickly covered his mouth and held his breath. Zeer and Sparks saw the agony on Rad’s face and knew immediately what was happening. They pulled him close and supported him next to the wall. Then they, too, covered his mouth with their hands and surrounded him with their bodies as he battled as hard as he could against the inevitable, but he lost. Several strong muffled coughs erupted from deep within his chest. They all froze in place and waited until he stopped…and as he did, they listened. Several hellish minutes passed without another sound, either from Rad or from the guards below. He looked up and nodded that he was okay. Collectively, they removed their hands from his mouth very slowly, and waited awhile longer. It seemed they’d made it. Sparks blew out a silent sigh and then gestured that it was time to go.

  Reaching the door, Sparks simply opened it bit by bit, hoping it wouldn’t creak. It wasn’t locked, and it opened without a sound. He gave a silent, ‘Thank you!’ to the maintenance crews.

  They walked through the door and down a stairway that was made of the same metal grating that had been used on the platform. Once at the bottom, they paused a moment to give their hearts a chance to recover, and they could see that they were now in room that was much smaller. It was oval shaped with boxes stored on shelves next to the walls and two doors at opposite ends. Both were closed.

  “I need to block that far door. Right?” Rad spoke softly but needed to make sure of what he was supposed to do.

  Sparks answered, “Yes. Find two of the heaviest boxes, and I’ll help you place them in front of the door. How’s your chest?”

  “Better. I still have a small tickle in my throat, and I’m coughing a little, but I think I can control it now.”

  “Good.”

  Then Rad walked over to the shelves and tested several boxes. He found two that he thought would work and Sparks helped him move them to secure the door. When they were done, they walked back over to where Zeer stood.

  Then Spark’s asked, “Well, Zeer, now it’s up to you. Are you ready?

  She looked down for a moment, took a deep breath, and said, “I guess I have to be, don’t I.”

  This part of their plan had taken the most time to figure out. They knew someone with high-level clearance could enter this area. It wasn’t far from the main hall where the large meeting was taking place. They felt this could work, but it was going to take some acting on Zeer’s part.

  “Here goes…” Zeer started walking towards the unblocked door that entered the larger room. Rad touched her shoulder for a moment. She glanced back, and he said, “You’ll do great. We’ve got your back.” They smiled at each other, and Zeer continued on.

  At the door, Zeer hesitated for just a moment, put her high-heeled shoes back on, straightened her clothes, and shook her hair out. Standing up straight, she threw her shoulders back, licked her lips, and opened the door. Light rushed into the smaller room and then dissipated as she closed it again, leaving it just slightly ajar so that Rad and Sparks could watch and come out when it was time.

  “Hi there boys!” Zeer spoke with a slight slur, doing her best to look sexy and sound somewhat tipsy.

  Both guards turned and stared in her direction. It was obvious that neither knew what to do for a moment. Then they seemed to recognize what was happening and started to enjoy the scene. One spoke up and said, “Hey there. What are you doing in here?”

  The second guard figured it out as well and said, “Looks like you just came from the big meeting. Are people celebrating?”

  “Yes, we are, and I came in here because I knew I might get to see some strong, handsome men.” Zeer then gave them her best shy yet alluring look and walked past them, putting a hand on each of their shoulders as she did so.

  They glanced at each other, chuckled knowingly and smiled. As she passed by, they turned to face her and kept talking. They were very attracted and were enjoying looking at such a beautiful woman.

  “How did you get in here?” one of them asked.

  She giggled and explained, “A friend let me in. She’s part of the council and had the code. She was a bit drunk, too, and she’ll be coming to join us in a few minutes after she gets rid of her husband.”

  This made the two men even more interested. This could be an exciting night.

  “We’re both glad you dropped in. It’s been pretty boring being on guard on a night when everyone else is having a big party.”

  The conversation continued with the men facing away from Rad and Sparks and completely focused on Zeer. This gave the two of them the opportunity to walk in quietly and stand just a few meters from the guards. Then Rad spoke. “Well, it looks like it’s not going to be boring for you two much longer.”

  Both men swiveled around to face him, “What the hell?” They then fumbled for their weapons in a panic. As they were trying to get their guns out, Zeer, who was now behind the men, clamped her fingers down extremely hard on the neck and shoulder region of both men. They collapsed in a heartbeat.

  Sparks ran up and collected the weapons and gave them to Zeer. He smiled at her and nodded his approval. She smiled back.

  Rad checked the door to the central computer. It was locked. “Damn!” Rad exclaimed in frustration. He knew that this was the one door for which Sparks no code. Sparks tried the unlocking device that he’d used on the first door, but it didn’t work. They’d hoped that this door would be open because he’d found out that the guards sometimes used the computer room as a place to rest when they took breaks during their shifts, but not tonight.

  Sparks went to plan B. “Okay, let’s see if we can use this guy’s hand print to get in.”

  They dragged one of the men near the door and together lifted his arm. Zeer grabbed his hand and placed it on the security pad. The lights flashed; the door clicked open. “God, it worked! Okay, let’s get them inside and get started.” They were all relieved.

  Inside, the room was dark and cool. They dragged the men through the doorway and laid them face down where Zeer could watch and stun them again if needed.

  Rad and Sparks noticed that the computer’s digital interface was located in the center of the room. All Rad had to do was stand or sit in that area to begin to activate and control the computer with movements of his hands. He sat down, took several small hacking devices out of his backpack, and reached out to touch the interface.

  It was mesmerizing for Zeer and Sparks to watch Rad work. He flew through the interface, figuring out codes to hack through each layer of security with the help of the devices that he’d brought. The 3-D figures in the display were swept aside, one at a time, and Rad moved deeper and deeper into the memory of the central system. He eventually found a section where he thought the plans to leave the Earth might be located and then discovered a sub-program entitled “Pariahs”. It took some time to decrypt, but he was finally successful. “Okay, I’m in. I’ve found it. Let’s see what they’ve planned.”

  It took Rad longer than they had hoped to find and decipher what they needed. Sparks and Zeer were getting nervous, and Rad had begun to cough more as he worked. Sparks had brought more of the medicine, but he was worried about giving it to Rad. He knew that too much of it could cause some serious side effects. He’d really only wanted to use it once.

  Rad was finally done. He had an angry and grave look on his face. “Okay, I’m going to have to delete this program.” Sparks and Zeer stood closer to Rad and waited for him to continue. He spoke hurriedly in order to continue.
“It’s vile! We were right that the first part of the program contains the security for the Shelter. They did put a lock down procedure in place that’s set to activate when they leave. That will occur right away. That’s the first part that I’ll get rid of. The second part will happen thirty days after they leave. They have millions of small drones ready to take off when the program gives the command. From the notes, I can see that the drones will release a toxin that will kill every human left behind on the Earth. The water and air as well as all other living things will be left relatively untouched. It looks like, in their words, they want to try to reset Earth. It also talks about wanting their descendants to be able to return some time in the distant future to re-establish a human presence here after the Earth has had time to move back into balance. I’ve got to get this done!”

  Zeer and Sparks felt the power of Rad’s words. They were sickened. It was something none of them could have ever imagined, and it would all be set in motion in just three days.

  Sparks spoke quickly and simply said, “Do it Rad!”

  Rad worked furiously. They all knew that they’d been in the room quite a while now and every moment brought them closer to danger.

  “I’ve killed the first part of the program. The Shelter will not lock down. Now, the next part.” Rad’s hands were flying over the interface, and he was close to deleting the destructive part when, without warning, there was a loud crash as a door flew open. Rad glanced up for just a second, then looked back down and continued frantically working.

  Zeer and Sparks hid behind the computer, their guns ready. The security guards on the floor started waking up, and there were a lot of other guards in the room now, along with one other person. Sparks recognized who it was. It was Harlequin.

  The guards were circling the room trying to surround them. Sparks and Zeer looked at each other and knew that they had to fight as long and hard as they could so that Rad had time to get rid of the program. The lives of every Terran depended on it. The two rose up off their knees, raised their guns, and glanced quickly around the corner of the computer. As they did, they heard several shots ring out from above and they both felt something pierce their shoulders. Looking up, they saw a solitary guard standing on a platform pointing a gun in their direction. They were already feeling numb and groggy as they stared at Rad and saw him slumped over in his chair. Then Sparks collapsed, and Zeer felt herself beginning to lose control. But with what little awareness was left to her, she glanced at her attackers once more. The last thing she remembered was seeing Harlequin’s cruel eyes staring down at her with the raw rage of hatred and anger embedded inside them.