Fools of us All - Chapter 11

A group of people were waiting to greet me as I left the examining room. They were all strangers to me, but that was no surprise. In the past few days everyone I had known had been killed, leaving me as alone as I've ever been.

Standing in the aftermath of the brief fight, I had felt my world crumbling. Dar was dead, Dun’s body was buried under the rubble, and the smell of burning bodies had nearly overwhelmed me. My survival instinct had kicked in and within moments I was on the run, trying to make certain that I would not be around when the obligatory authorities arrived. My first stop was the docks where I found the locker containing the globe. After that, I had used the emergency phone number and been picked up within moments, finding myself whisked away to a seemingly abandoned warehouse nearby. Inside I had found a massive machine standing nearly two stories high. They had only given me time for a quick glance before putting me in the infirmary to patch me up.

"...and it's an honour to finally be meeting you." A hand was held out in front of me, and grasped it in a firm handshake. I realised that I hadn't been paying attention and they had started to make introductions. Honestly, I didn't much care.

The group started walking around the building. It wasn't much more than a large warehouse that had been gutted. A massive machine sat in the middle of the room, humming in the background. As I looked at it, I was a little disappointed. It looked rather frail.

The man whose hand I had shaken saw me looking at it and grinned. "I see you like our little device," he said expansively. The pride on his face led me to believe that this was the lead researcher on the project. I nodded, not ready to trust my voice in the overwhelming group that surrounded me. "Well, I'm glad you do. We've put a great deal of work into this project, and it was all for you. I couldn't be happier."

Something about how he said that tickled my mind every so slightly. His grin didn't seem as sunny as it had a moment before. I didn't have a chance to explore this thought because the doctor broke in at that point. "We don't have time to go into the details of the machine right now Doctor Stevn. Caz has to get prepped for the mission. There is a full briefing in a few minutes."

Dr Stevn nodded. "Of course, of course. We will talk later my dear." He walked away briskly, disappearing into a lab.

"Now, Caz," said a kindly woman, "your mission, as I'm sure you know, is very important to, well, the world. It seems like a great deal to handle on your own. But don't you worry. We have a whole cache of gadgets and information to make everything a snap. Come with me to the briefing room and everything will be explained."

Ten minutes later I found myself sitting in a small room at one end of a table. The room was featureless except for a large window that looked out over the warehouse. A set of stairs had led up to the room as it was situated at least a full storey above the ground. On the table there was a small holo-projector set in the middle. Two other people were in the room with me and that was enough to make it feel crowded. The projector came to life, starting to play a mini-drama, as the man on the left began to speak. "Many years ago there was an omen given to our people, a prophecy of great importance. That prophecy spoke of a dark time, a time when life would become unbearable for all those who live, where the dead were counted among the fortunate." Images of war and of pain played across the table as people were cut down in agony. "But amidst the suffering there would rise one who was able to lead them, one from a far-flung place not known to us now. He would be able to stop the uprising, but not alone. A brave warrior would be sent to find him and to bring him back. Together they would bring freedom to a land long oppressed." As the story came to a crescendo the images flashed quicker and it soon became possible to only see one man and one woman, surrounded by the swirling images, battered and bruised, but ultimately victorious. "That traveller, that warrior, Caz, is you."

I had already heard some of this, but this was the first time I was confronted with the whole story. "What...?" was all I could manage. I felt dizzy."

I know it is hard to understand, but you must trust us on this." It was the same woman again. She was obviously very important. Everyone had been deferring to her ever since I first saw her. I studied her closely, and in response to her unanswered question she said "My name is Amanda Brun, and I run the organisation. And I have to say, I think you are holding up marvellously considering the circumstances." She smiled at me, but there was a great sadness there."

Someone needs to start explaining things to me much less theatrically, and they have to do it soon." I was trying to be gruff, but it was mostly bluster and hot air. I was terrified.

Impressed with my spirit, Amanda smiled. "Very well. First things first." She reached down and handed me a pair of wristbands. "These will bring you back here to this machine-" she waved a hand at the centre of the warehouse "-as well as the one you are to retrieve. We don't know a great deal about him, but we do know he lived in the early 21st century and he went by the name Spin."

"21st century?" I rubbed my ears, and then my forehead where the headache was forming. "That's going to be a little tough."

The man stood up and looked out the window at the machine. "Doctor Stevn is a brilliant man, Caz, and he has managed to create something that no one thought possible. You will be able to return to the 21st century and find that which we seek."

I stared at his back and then turned my head to face Amanda, who nodded. "It's true, my dear. And with that invention we will be able to save our world. Now, let's get down to the specifics."

Before she could continue I heard a large crash from outside the warehouse, followed immediately by an alarm. Amanda looked up, her eyes wide. "They've found us!"

Pandemonium reigned downstairs. The sound of gunfire and explosions sounded louder and more frequent outside and on the inside armed men and women were running around, yelling things to each other. I followed Amanda as she rushed down the stairs. "We have to get you out of here. This base is compromised. We must regroup and..." Her thought was never finished as shot rang out, piercing her through the heart. Almost simultaneously the entire wall of the warehouse disintegrated, falling inwards with a crash that seemed to reverberate forever.

In the newly created hole I could see the uniforms of the M.E.R.C.s. I knew enough about them to realise that the building was surrounded. I had no escape. Frantically I looked around for a weapon, hoping to make a last stand. Instead my eyes fell upon the machine. With a sigh of resignation I realised that my path was set. Sprinting towards the machine I grabbed a lab technician hunkering behind a console. "Can you operate this thing?" I shouted to be heard above the sound of the gunfight being waged.

He looked at me in shock, then at the machine in front of us, and then back at me. "You're crazy, I hope you realise that." Moving quickly to small booth he flipped a few switches. "Luckily we have had it powered up all day. Go stand on the platform."

I moved towards the stairs, but stopped when he grabbed my arm. "One more thing - this is going to hurt like hell. I just thought you should know that!" He let me go and concentrated on preparing my departure.

Muttering oaths under my breath I climbed up to the platform as was immediately surrounded by energy. It glowed softly and then more ferociously. The last sight I saw before it completely obscured my vision was the technician waving at me, and then being shot twice in the chest. I looked over to see the same man pointing his gun at me. As he squeezed the trigger the energy suddenly compacted itself around me, blinding me completely. A thousand hot knives followed by a thousand icicles followed by a peeling of the skin followed by shattering bones followed by rending muscles followed by stretched tendons followed by intense pressure followed by sudden darkness and wetness.

I stood for a moment, crying with the memory of the pain. Lights came towards me at a great speed and suddenly I jumped, feeling cold metal smash into my legs and glass shattering on my back. Without conscious thought I clung for my life, holding on as I spun and whirled to a stop. Something below me opened and a figure leaned out, gagging. My hand fell limply down, brushing his head. "It's not to late," I breathed as my strength gave out completely. As I slid downwards I gratefully swam in the darkness that came to claim me.