Fifty Years After The Plague
Edward Schaelles was grateful for the solitude of the Cryo-Lab, it was a relief after twenty-seven years of custodianship to have finally reached this day. The man in the Cryo chamber held the whole of humanity in his hands, his awakening would set the world on a new course. If there was one person who could stop it all going up in flames it was JD2022. The level of destruction in the other Sectors had finally been confirmed, it was time to reawaken their only hope.
JD2022 looked calm in his frozen sleep. But once awoken in his new body, he would walk into a firestorm. As a CryoBiologist, Edward hadn’t had much cause to get involved in politics. Most of his work after the plague had been in Centrum, and it had been a long time since he’d bothered to wonder what was outside, it hadn’t mattered for years. There was nowhere to go anyway. But when he’d discovered what Morgan was up to, he’d had to take action for the sake of his son, if for no other reason, and now for his granddaughter.
Edward had vague memories of the world before the plague. He’d been a young man then, twenty-three years of age, just at the beginning of a promising career in Cryogenic preservation. What had once been a way for the rich and famous to try to live forever had quickly become a means of self-preservation for the key leaders of the human race. The ruling elite who’d invested their money in Cryogenic chambers were swiftly thrown out and replaced with more important contents. Their frozen bodies were left on the surface, naked and exposed, never to awaken from their deep sleep. Most would have preferred it that way, Edward believed. The world they would have inherited after the plague was not one they would have chosen.
They’d made considerable progress since he first entered Centrum. JD2022 was lucky to be in there, sleeping soundly and securely, safe from the perils of this new world.
JD2022 was prepared for awakening. The nanotech readings had confirmed all was well physically. The subject was thirty-one years old. In fact it was his thirty-first birthday that very day. There was some poetry in that. This man had requested a rebirth on his birthday. He was actually eighty-one years old, but his physical and mental deterioration had been stalled by the freezing process. He’d need a young man’s constitution to handle what was coming next.
Edward Schaelles was tiring of life. So many years away from the blue skies and beautiful landscapes of his youth had taken their toll. He’d not had much to celebrate since the plague years, and after the death of his wife there was only his work and his son to live for. His life’s work was almost over, it was time to pass the responsibility to his son. Once Philip had a daughter, he’d understand why Edward had had to take such drastic unilateral action.
Taking JD2022 out of his Cryogenic state was his final task. His son would continue his work after that had been completed. Edward was ready to sleep, he envied the slumber that these people had been allowed to enjoy. He’d hang on a little longer because he was desperate to see Philip’s child born. It would be like finding a flower growing in the desert – beauty and wonder at last in a place of desolation.
JD2022’s body began to jump. It was always the same as the brain was reactivated. It was literally a rebirth, a flood of memories finding sudden motion after a break of almost fifty years. As consciousness was confirmed on the console in front of him, the confidential details about the man would be unlocked. His files had been top-level security, and only when his brain patterns returned to normal would the data be unlocked.
Edward had never seen anything like this. Most of the Cryos were politicians or scientists with specialist expertise, put on ice to guarantee the passage of knowledge through the years. Nobody had yet been under as long as this man, he was special.
Edward monitored the screen and waited for the lock to be opened. Although tired of life, he was still fascinated to see how this process worked. He’d been taking care of JD2022 for twenty-seven years, ever since the initial transfer took place in complete secrecy. It felt as if he’d been waiting for this day forever.
He could see that the console was polling the man’s brain, extracting data and matching it with things that only he could know. It was a padlock, and the combination set with uniquely personal information. He couldn’t see the questions or the answers, it was an electronic process, but he was able to watch it taking place on his screen.
There were ten pieces of data, ten bars on his screen. As each challenge was made to JD2022’s brain, the correct answer was received and the bars changed in colour from blue to green.
This was top-level security, it went over everybody’s head. There was no higher level of authority, it superseded everything that had gone before. When Edward had taken on the task of managing this awakening, it had been in the strictest confidence. If he’d ever shared what he’d found out it would have been punishable by death, even more so if their leaders ever discovered how he’d deceived them.
It was for their own sake. He had to take action to save them all. If he hadn’t done it covertly, Morgan’s team would have killed him. He hadn’t even told his wife before she died. He regretted that. No man should live with secrets, he’d understood that only after she’d left him.
The console changed again and a password request box appeared on the screen. He’d remembered this information for many years, it would be ill-advised to record it anywhere. He entered the data carefully. The panel unlocked and JD2022’s file was presented on the screen.
There was a security code which would confirm to anybody in authority that what was about to happen overruled everything else. JD2022 would have control of the entire infrastructure from this point on. The agreement between them was clear. Edward would complete this essential process, and then it would be over as far as he was concerned. It would be another fifty years until the final action was taken. He would be long dead by then, but it would save his son and his granddaughter.
JD2022’s eyes opened and Edward looked into them for the first time, searching for clues as to who this man was. He had a name now, and he would need to welcome him back to their terrible world.
Edward pressed a button at the side of the Cryo chamber and the lid slid open. He could see that JD2022 was struggling to make sense of it all so he took the initiative.
‘Welcome back to Centrum. My name is Edward Schaelles. If you recall, I’m the CryoBiologist charged with your awakening. You’ll be unsteady on your feet at first, just take a moment to come round, it can be very disorienting at first …’
JD2022 stepped out of the chamber and walked over to Edward’s screen. There was his file and Morgan’s, just as he’d left them before his long sleep began. Schaelles had been as good as his word, he’d delivered on everything he’d promised. He could feel Morgan’s consciousness, but it was weak and subjugated like a distant echo, it wouldn’t trouble him. He’d got access to everything he needed from Morgan. They’d taken care of that fifty years ago.
Everything he required was there, but he’d have to move fast to cover his tracks. He needed to get to a place where they’d never come for him. When he was ready, he’d come to them. It would be another fifty years until that moment.
He read the data on the screen and committed it to memory. He was still struggling to orientate himself after the awakening, but there was no way he could trust that data to any electronic device. It had to stay in his head. These codes would eventually save humanity.
Once the information had been safely stored, JD2022 began the deletion process. The data begin to erase just as he’d always intended, starting at the bottom and working to the top of the screen. There had to be no history of these events. For him to make his final move, he had to remain undetected and unchallenged.
He and Edward Schaelles had plotted this forty-nine years previously. He’d been a prisoner then, scarred and tortured by the man whose careless and callous actions had created a second pandemic. Schaelles had saved him. He was supposed to have been stored as a replacement host body for President Morgan but instead it was he who was stealing James Morgan’s body, and he would inhabit it for another fifty years until the time came. Morgan had supped with the devil and JD2022 would use his body to put things right, unopposed by Morgan’s political cronies. Schaelles had seen JD2022 as their salvation. He’d been blamed for the second wave of outbreaks of the plague but now he’d be able to make restitution. Schaelles believed him to be an honourable man. He was trusting him with their survival.
Edward was not a brave man, but he’d known that Morgan had to be stopped. JD2022 was their only hope as far as he could tell – he’d learned what Morgan’s plans were and they were not in the interests of Centrum or humanity.
Edward watched JD2022 work through the deletion process. There could be no trace left here – the transition to Morgan’s body would need to be secret. Unknown to Delman, Edward would pass that secret to his son. It was on a timed secure message ready to send after the baby was born. He didn’t want to trouble Philip until the baby had arrived, it would prove a heavy burden for him, just as it had been for Edward. He’d understand when he had a child of his own.
He looked at JD2022 as he stood in front of the computer terminal trying to peer into his soul. Had he done the right thing? They were all going to perish anyway if Morgan had got his way. Edward was taken by surprise as he saw the man staring at him. Before he knew it, a hand was gripped around his throat and he couldn’t breathe. The more he struggled and panicked, the faster the life drained from him. He wondered how this man was so strong. He’d just come out of the CryoPod and it usually took some time to regain full strength.
As Edward struggled to take his final breath, his thoughts turned to more important matters. He’d never see his granddaughter. A tear ran from his right eye, but it was too late to cry, he was as good as dead. As the life drained from him, he placed his finger on the keypad next to the console. This would send an archive of the data to his son’s file area so he’d be able to piece together what had happened. His body slumped to the floor and the grip was finally loosened from around his neck. At seventy-three years of age, Edward had been unable to offer any resistance to his assailant, a man he’d believed to be his ally.
JD2022 waited until he saw the last two words disappear on the screen – his real name – which had been right at the top of the file. He turned, ready to begin the next phase of his life, with his consciousness now controlling the body of the President. He would have to leave Centrum to stay safe, and return when it was time to do what had to be done.
The last text faded from the screen: his name, Josh Delman. The man in whose hands the future of the entire human race now resided.
Allies
‘How did you get caught up in all of this?’ Jena asked as she and Max moved off in the opposite direction to Clay and Julia.
She was nervous about what they might encounter, she’d barely drawn breath since her fight on the stairwell. They’d shot her with an electronic device which had knocked her out on the spot. She recalled waking in a medical area where the lights were extremely bright. Jena was accustomed to The Climbs where, other than sunshine, there was virtually no light. The brightness was ferocious and she was experiencing incredible pain. She woke up as needles were being inserted through her nose – it felt as if they were going directly into her brain. She’d cried out, thinking that they were subjecting her to some form of torture, but it had ended soon enough and she was placed in a holding cell where she’d been joined by Julia shortly afterwards.
‘I work – I worked for Fortrillium,’ Max replied to Jena’s question. ‘I’m here because I got involved with Talya Slater.’
‘Joe Parsons is my son,’ Jena responded. ‘If you helped Talya to keep him alive in there – in here – thank you, I appreciate it.’
‘Doesn’t seem to have done me much good, but no problem. To be honest, I feel terrified, but it feels like the one good thing I ever did in my life. I’ve been a coward, this feels like the right thing to do.’
Jena felt ashamed. She was embarrassed by her reaction to Matt’s death. She saw now that she’d been useless to Joe and Dillon. She understood what Max was saying. Her gunfight on the stairwell had been the first honest thing she’d done in six years. She’d just retreated after Matt’s death, horrified at the enormity of what had happened. When she started to fight back, she finally understood that’s what she should have been doing all along. It was much better to be fighting. She felt a rage that she had suppressed after Matt’s death, it came flooding through her veins and it felt good. With every shot she fired, it seemed that the balance was being redressed for her years of silence and fear.
‘I understand exactly what you mean,’ Jena replied. ‘I kept quiet too long. My son has been in The Grid setting an example to everybody and all I could do was cower. Well, enough of that. I’m scared still, I’m terrified of what’s happening here, but they’re not going to steal my life one day at a time. If I die here at least I’ll be fighting back. I’ll keep pushing forward until I take my last breath. I owe that much to my sons.’
Max understood. He had a vague recollection of her husband’s trial, but it didn’t take long for one death in The Grid to merge into another. He’d lost count of the times he’d dispatched the bots to clean out The Grid after a trial. He seldom had to make direct contact with the bloody remains, but the regular squelches as the bots expelled the crushed bodies through their pipework served as a reminder that human beings were losing their lives. He’d kept his eyes averted but his silent acquiescence had stolen his soul, one piece at a time.
Like Jena, he had realized that fighting back and helping others was the right thing to do. He knew that the minute he’d decided to help Talya Slater rather than hinder her. It had come as a relief to him once she’d finally forced out the truth about the hidden WristCom. He’d gone through all that pain and resistance – and a mangled hand – to work out that he was ready to change sides.
The moment he’d programmed the bot to perform its maintenance checks at The Core of The Grid, he’d known what the right course of action was. He was petrified yet exhilarated, fearful but alive. He knew the dangers. Of course he didn’t want to die, but resisting Fortrillium, in any small way that he could, made him feel useful. That was it. He was useful again. People needed him. He’d been like a ghost for many years, existing alongside everybody else, but not being a part of anything. That had changed and he was ready for the new journey, whatever it brought.
Already Max was among good people, he was part of a team, they had a common goal. He understood the chances of success weren’t high, but it felt empowering to be part of something so important.
‘I agree with you. When Talya Slater did this to my hand I learned that you can bear pain and survive it. It didn’t kill me, it forced me to confront who I am. I’m grateful to Talya for doing this to me. It hurts like hell, but it took this to make me see sense at last. If I die in here, I’m going out fighting.’
Max and Jena were walking cautiously through the ruined city. The newly rendered landscape in The Grid was fully established, and it seemed this was where the next Mode would take place. They were nervous about snipers. It had been a sudden and violent start to their time as Justice Seekers, but Clay had kept them safe, directing to them to cover.
As they walked past the ruined tower blocks, several rats crossed in front of them and ran into a building. Max jumped. He’d got used to a life on Silk Road without the creatures. Jena didn’t flinch, she’d grown accustomed to vermin since moving to The Climbs. They were everywhere and there was nothing you could do to stop them. You had to accept them as a way of life.
Seeing the rats made Max and Jena turn and take more notice of the building they’d run into. There was a faded and heavily rusted sign above the shattered windows. It had once been a Med-Centre but had probably been stripped clean many years ago. It was wrecked, decaying and unwelcoming, but Jena and Max decided to step inside, it seemed a good place to start. Mitchell and Ross were in a bad way and even discarded bandages or dressings would help.
Their hunch was well rewarded. Unknown to them, Linwood had placed fresh supplies in the area. He’d had to take care not to show too much generosity, but they were more plentiful than Jena had ever seen in her six years living in The Climbs. When she thought how they’d had to scratch around to find dressings to help Harry, her anger began to burn once again, and her resolve to fight back was renewed.
There were two bags in the Med-Centre, both placed there by Linwood. It was he who’d triggered the rats to cover his tracks and make it look like a natural part of the gameplay. Inside the bags were water, bread and a collection of dressings. There was even disinfectant, Jena had not seen that in many years. Hygiene was something you had to let slip in The Climbs, even on Silk Road disinfectant had been hard to come by.
‘This is good,’ said Max. ‘This must have been placed here for us to find.’
‘We can get Mitchell and Ross patched up with this. I’m not sure how mobile they’ll be when the next Mode begins, but at least we can clean the wounds and stop their bleeding.’
It was something positive at least. They could eat and recuperate, and they would be able to make the wounded more comfortable. Jena and Max returned to the main group, walking in silence. Jena was preoccupied with thoughts of Joe and Dillon, Max was wondering what Talya Slater was up to. She was a strong woman, she would be plotting something. If they hadn’t caught her yet, she’d be trying to protect them. That much he’d learned from their brief encounter.
There was an immediate lifting of spirits when they rejoined the other Justice Seekers. Hannah was particularly pleased to see what Jena and Max had found on their journey. She didn’t want to say anything in case it was picked up by the microphones, but as a former Gridder she knew it was no coincidence that the supplies had been found. In the same way she and Linwood had left food and water in the labyrinth, Linwood was sending her a signal to tell her he was watching out for them. His hands would be tied, just as hers had been, but at least she knew that he was doing what he could.
Jena set about dressing wounds straight away. She attended to Mitchell first – he was barely moving, whatever had happened to him had left him weak and vulnerable. Chris was calm and had responded well to Hannah’s company. He worked with her to bandage and clean Ross’s wounds. Ross was tough, he’d sustained several injuries but none so bad he wouldn’t be able to fight back when the next Mode began.
It wasn’t long until Mitchell and Ross were patched up. There were sufficient supplies to re-dress Max’s hand wound as well as allowing Chris and Jena to clean up the minor cuts and lacerations they’d sustained in their own battles.
‘Hold some back for Clay and Julia,’ Max suggested. ‘Clay was in a bad way, I didn’t notice if the Centuria had been hurt at all.’
The food was divided up and eaten, the water shared and information exchanged between the Justice Seekers about their experiences and reasons for being in The Grid.
It seemed as if things were going well. The two casualties were comfortable, even if Mitchell had barely uttered a word since his arrival. It was easy to forget this was a controlled environment which was created by other human beings. Nothing was real, their surroundings were artificially constructed on consoles by Gridders who’d been specially selected for their gaming abilities. In The Grid appearances were always deceptive.
The Gridders had just put another plan in action for the Justice Seekers. It was a small diversion, a minor digression to keep the group on their toes before the final Mode was activated. But before the hour was over, it would leave two of them dead.
Punishment
The Gridders were in a state of high alert. Damien Hunter was paying an unannounced late night visit and the rumour was that he was taking scalps. They’d relaxed too soon, they thought they’d be off the hook once they’d covered up whatever had gone wrong in The Grid. They should have known better. Hunter had been more attentive than usual on this trial, he wasn’t going to let it slip. The Head Gridder gave the team a five-minute warning of the visit. She warned them to be on their toes.
Hunter had stormed into the room, throwing it into immediate silence. The Gridders stood up when he entered – there was something about the way he burst through the doors that demanded it.
Linwood had taken care to cover his tracks. He knew he was vulnerable because of his collusion with Hannah, but so far they’d left him alone.
There were already extra Centuria in the area, placed there after Hannah’s arrest. They seemed particularly alert once Hunter was in the building.
Hunter walked along the rows of desks, saying nothing, just looking at the Gridders. He approached Linwood, he could feel himself sweating. A drop trickled from his temple, down his cheek and onto the floor. Did Hunter see it? He seemed to miss nothing.
Damien Hunter walked up to Linwood, staring him directly in the face. Linwood averted his eyes, not wanting to appear confrontational. He could hear Hunter’s breathing, the room was in complete silence.
Without warning, Hunter drew a weapon and placed it to the head of the Gridder who was standing to the side of Linwood. He pulled the trigger. There was a loud bang and the Gridder dropped to the floor. A splat of brain passed Hunter and landed on Linwood’s cheek.
A ripple of shock ran around the room, but nobody said anything. They continued to stand in silence, terrified of what he was about to do next.
Hunter barely flinched. His shirt was speckled with the blood of the man he’d just killed. The body was twitching on the floor, it was the only movement in the room. At last he spoke. It was a relief when the silence was finally broken.
‘I’m a little bit annoyed about what happened in The Grid earlier. You need to make sure that I don’t become extremely annoyed. We will now be monitoring all of your consoles continuously for unusual activity. I want these Justice Seekers tormented, but I need to keep a few of them alive, potentially up to twenty-four hours longer.’
Another bead of sweat trickled down Linwood’s face. Was everybody else in the room sweating like he was? He daren’t turn to look. He thought it must have been obvious to Hunter, but so far no bullet through the head.
‘If any of you were working with Janexx2, please step forward now.’
Linwood hadn’t been expecting that one. His face reddened, he felt himself burning up. Should he step forward? Would Hunter kill another colleague if he didn’t?
‘No volunteers? Very well, if you step forward now, your death will be swift. If we find you out later, I can promise it will be very slow and extremely painful. Now, does anybody have something that they want to tell me?’
Linwood hesitated. To step forward would mean instant death. He was no use to Hannah if that happened. Hunter couldn’t have known if anybody had been working with Hannah, they’d have been escorted out of the building alongside her if he had. Linwood thought he was safe from detection. Hunter would kill Gridders at random if he wanted to, but there was nothing he could do to prevent that.
Hunter was walking up and down the rows of desks again, looking into the eyes of the Gridders one by one. The tension was electric, Linwood just wanted it to end. He had decided to gamble. Hunter couldn’t have known he had been working with Hannah, they’d been careful to cover their tracks. He’d opened up a secure socket before Hunter’s announcement so his attempts to track the outside source of interference should avoid the scrutiny of Fortrillium. He’d have to take great care over what help he gave to the Justice Seekers. He was relieved to have placed the MedPacks earlier, before Hunter’s visit, he wouldn’t have dared do it after the warning was issued.
Linwood chose to stay alive. He was going to help his friend Hannah and the other Justice Seekers. And he was determined to track down whoever was interfering with the trials. He had to find out what was going on. If he was discovered, he’d take his chances. It didn’t seem to matter to Hunter if people were guilty or not, everybody’s life was balanced on a knife edge anyway.
Hunter stood at the front of the room. There was complete silence again. The body of the dead Gridder had stopped twitching, but there was a large pool of blood around the blasted skull. Hunter spoke again, moving to the side of the Head Gridder who looked as terrified as everybody else in the room.
‘I have one more announcement before I leave. We’re making an internal re-organization. We’re removing a tier of management.’
Linwood looked at the Head Gridder’s face. She had guessed what Hunter was referring to. On Damien’s final word, she began to run along the aisle between the desks, jumping over the dead body obstructing her exit. The Centuria raised their weapons and pointed them directly at her, fingers poised on triggers and ready to end her life.
‘Stop!’ shouted Hunter, holding up his free hand.
He levelled his weapon as if he had all the time in the world. The Head Gridder was almost at the office door, surely they weren’t going to let her run? She placed her hand on the ID panel and it turned red.
‘Access Denied’ came the electronic voice.
Frantically, the Head Gridder placed her hand on the panel again.
‘Access Denied.’
She turned to look at Damien Hunter. She knew she was on borrowed time and couldn’t believe she was still alive.
Hunter waited until the Head Gridder looked him directly in the eyes, then shot, right in the centre of her forehead. She dropped to the ground. There was an audible gasp this time. The Gridders couldn’t contain the tension any longer.
Damien Hunter handed his weapon to a nearby Centuria and began to head for the door, ignoring the shocked faces of the Gridders.
‘Consider your department reorganized,’ he said, as he stepped over the body of the woman whose life he had just ended.
‘Make sure this trial is good, or next time I visit I’ll be looking for some new people to fire.’
The last thing he did as he left the room was to turn and point directly at Linwood.
‘You’re in charge,’ he said. ‘You have two hours to do better than the dead woman over there.’