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Rift (Part 2)

My aimless rambling took me deep into the slums. There were less apartment blocks and more common houses here. People with no Bio-Enhancements at all were often forced to live down here in the lower levels of the city. I saw many people sitting on the sidewalk. They held their computers up to me as I passed, calling for mercy. I ignored them, trying to avoid their gazes.

I wandered until nightfall. At this time of day, the streets weren't safe, especially around this district. I made my way back cautiously, keeping my right hand on my switchblade. No one decided to start anything with me. For that, I was thankful. Most of the time, I didn't mind a little exercise before bed. If I got to stab someone before the sun rose, it was a night well spent. Now, I only had my mind on one thing: the disturbance.

I had now traveled back to the middle district. It was nine forty six PM. I still had time to wander. An amusing thought occurred to me on a whim and I turned towards the hospital. To get there, I had to encroach on Justin's territory for just one section of street. I wasn't worried about it right now.

My legs were starting to feel the journey, but I paid them no mind. I rounded the corner of the ration station to get a view of the hospital entrance. The florescent lighting spilled over the set of metal stairs leading up to it. No one was around at this hour. This gave me a bit of confidence, but also made me suspicious of and to any Enforcers or Justin's thugs in the vicinity. I crossed the street with a spring in my step, trying to keep out of the light of the street lamps. Once across, I skirted the front entrance and took the path around to the grounds in the back. From there, I would be able to see what I wanted to see.

The night was getting a bit chilly, but I still couldn't see my breath in the air. I took long strides in the shadows under the single tree in the yard. Towering above it was an eight-story wall gridded with lighted windows. I counted three up and eleven over, picked up a small rock and threw it. It knocked on the glass and fell back to the ground. He usually took a minute or two to respond, but this time he was at the window in a flash. It opened and Rorick poked his head out the window.

"Eswin?! Is that you? Get in here! Quick!" He was overeager it seemed.

"Hey, Rorick, I told you before I can't do those sorts of things." I called back, a mischievous glint in my eye. "Just save it all for me when you get out." He shook his head. He looked frustrated but it was hard to tell from this distance.

"I'm not joking!" He cast a glance back into the room before continuing. "And I'm not talking about that! You have to get in here!" I was starting to think he wasn't talking about sex. With a furrowed brow I took brisk steps back to the front entrance.

The glass doors parted as I approached and a young lady at the desk looked up from the mainframe. As I crossed the metal floor to her, she cleared her throat, and pushed her Tech-Goggles back up the bridge of her nose. They rotated as they scanned me.

"Er... hello sir. What can I help you with?" I leaned in against her desk in hopes her goggles wouldn't spot my switchblade.

"I'd like to see someone about this puncture on my shoulder." I said in a slightly plaintiff tone, giving it a stiff roll. "I've been experiencing some loss of feeling." Her goggles flashed, then she turned back to the mainframe. After a few moments of tapping away at her keyboard, she spoke again.

"I can schedule something for you tomorrow... It's rather late. If you must, you can go to the emergency room. I can't handle such matters here..." I nodded slowly.

"Alright then. Could you point me in the direction of the ER then? I'll wait." She pointed behind her down the right hand hall.

"You could head back that way. Or I suppose you could go around the building outside. Either way, just follow the signs." I removed myself from the desk.

"Thank you." I went off towards the hall with brisk steps. I knew I had to take the left hand hall to get up to Rorick's room. When I had almost reached its mouth, I quieted my steps and turned back for the left. The lady couldn't see me due to the large board behind her desk, but there was the potential of her not hearing my steps down the hall and becoming suspicious. If I could get into the next hall before she did, she would likely assume I was still down the first one.

With little effort and caution, I crossed the empty space between them and ducked down the left hand hall. I might have made a bit of noise, but I was moving now. Even if they caught me, I'd be at Rorick's room already. This in mind, I didn't waste any time. I knew where the stairs were and located them. I took them three at a time up to the third floor.

Once in the empty corridor, I counted the room numbers until I got to Three Forty One. My hand rested on the heavy metal handle of the door, but I paused before opening it. I heard an unnaturally high pitched whining noise from inside that sent a shiver down my spine. I suppose the hair on the back of my neck and on my arms would stand on end if I had any. I shook my head and pushed the door open.

"Rorick?" I half-whispered. His hospital room was small, just big enough for him. The white sheets of his bed were nearly torn off. He stood in his gown, holding his IV stand, the tubes daggling off of his arms and running up to a bag of saline and Bio-Gel. The whining noise was stronger now. It seemed to come from behind the closed door of his bathroom.

"Eswin! I so glad you made it!" He took a few stiff steps up to me and kissed me. I wrapped my arms around him carefully, trying not to touch any tubes, and returned it, moving my lips over his. He broke away first and I let him go.

"What is this about? What's going on?" I inquired, closing the door behind me. His gaze shifted down towards the bathroom door. For a moment, I thought I heard a cricket chirp from the other side. That was absurd of course, because there were no living beings in the city besides humans and a few pets and specimens. Could this be a leek?

Rorick's metallic, golden hair covered one ear and one eye. The other side was significantly shorter. His piercing, dark green eyes (That were smaller than mine) darted back and forth with nervous energy as if he'd been caught in the act of a crime.

"Umm... You know, you're not going to believe what I'm about to tell you... I've only recently come to terms with it myself, but... You know about the disturbance right?" I suddenly became very confused. My mind swirled with possibilities, none of which made any scientific sense.

"Y... Yes? Yes, I heard it, and saw the first report..." My eyes also shifted to the bathroom door. The cricket was joined by several others in his song, as well as a rustling sound like wind. "Does that...?" I cocked my head towards the door. He nodded. I took the switchblade out of my pocket. For what, I wasn't sure. Rorick backed away. I looked over at him.

"It seems to be safe at least... just don't get too close to it. Promise?" He said. I nodded and threw the door open. The first half of the small tilled room was normal. A toilet with thick metal bars stood in the corner. On the other end, the walls had been cracked and bent. The tiles had snapped off the walls and floor. A couple exposed wires and pipes in the ceiling could be seen through a hole torn in it. The cause of this was a glowing purple disk floating vertically where the bath would have been. The rest of the room was gone. The disk seemed to produce a gravity that was likely the cause of the aforementioned destruction. Through the center of the disk jutted a branch of a fir tree ripe with pine-cones. The branch ran through the anomaly to a trunk that seemed to exist in another dimension. Crickets chirped from the other side of the disk in the crisp night air. Fresh air blew against my face, seeming to come right from the disk. It smelt unlike anything I had ever experienced. It was so clean, and mixed with the scent of the fir tree.

My heart raced. My switchblade quavered in my gloved hand. I considered taking a closer look at it, but I felt Rorick by my side.

"It's... Incredible..." I stammered. "How close have you gotten to it?" I tore my eyes away from it to gage his reaction. His eyes were wide and unmoving, as mine had been when I first entered.

"Only a foot or two closer than this. It starts to pull you if you get any closer..." He gave a shudder. "I threw a fork into it... It fell right through and hit the trunk of the tree. I never saw it again after it fell." I nodded slowly, trying to take it all in.

"Okay... and no one knows about it?" He shook his head.

"I don't think so... I wonder if the council has equipment to sense this kind of thing... And the hospital staff has to check the room sometime... I'm scared." He hugged my arm. "I don't know what to do... I've been too afraid to call anyone. What should we do? Report it to the council? They might know how to handle this kind of thing better than us, huh?" I put my switchblade back in my pocket and backed out of the room, shutting the door.

"No." Rorick looked shocked.

"Then... What?" I hardly knew what I was doing, but this anomaly was a Godsend, and I was going to make the most of it. I reached over and gave Rorick a peck on the lips, then made to leave.

"Keep this thing a secret, no matter what it takes. I'll be back in a few hours. I'm not sure how long exactly, but I need to set a few things straight first. You think you can do that for me?" I opened the door back out to the hallway, and looked back at him. He looked confused, but nodded.

"Okay. Hurry back though. I don't know what will happen, or when. What are you planning on doing?" I couldn't tell him yet. It would be better if I didn't have to tell him at all, but seeing as how the thing was right next to him, I could hardly avoid it. In any case, it had to wait until the last second, or else he'd want to go with me. With his blood disease, that would mean his death. I stepped out into the hall.

"I'll tell you when I get back. Sit tight and be strong, okay?" He shifted uncomfortably against the metal pole that held the liquid that kept him alive.

"Right. See you." I gave him a smile and closed the door behind me.

...

It was getting late. The half-moon was almost setting, its light reflecting off the metal all around me on the street, on the adjacent buildings, and the surface of my Tech-Blade clipped to my back. I approached a particular alleyway and moved into its darkness. A few paces in, I spotted the shadowed door into the building on the right. A small set of steps lead up to it. My boots made the sheets of metal that made up the stairs creak, and my leather-clad hand rapped on the door using the coded knock Chail had taught me. After a few seconds, I heard the familiar whine of an energy weapon from the other side just before Chail answered.

"A?" He asked.

"No, E." I answered. The doors latch was removed.

"Let yourself in." I did so, shutting the door behind me. The inside was darker than usual. I could barely see the racks of illegally imported goods that were not allowed in Lakia.

"Hello Eswin." Chial emerged from the shadows, an Ion rifle aimed at my head. I put my hands up with a slight smile.

"Hey Chail... Now that's no way to treat a respected customer is it? Holster that thing and we can do business civilly, huh?" Chial lowered it a bit, but kept his trained grip. He wore a ballistic face-mask and combat armor, but I could tell it was him. He spoke through the mask in a modulated voice.

"No one's with you I assume? Not like I would be able to tell if you're playing your cards right..." He circled me, his heavy boots clunking as he did. My hands remained up.

"If you're that paranoid, search me. Search outside. Search in here! I don't care, no one is with me, and I'm not carrying anything that could cut your armor except my Tech-Blade. You want me to toss it across the room?" He nodded, and I reached up slowly. "I'm moving nice and slow just for you, Chail, okay?" The blade was in my hand for only a moment, then I flicked my wrist and it was sent clattering to the floor several yards away. Chail was behind me in an instant.

"Keep your hands up..." His hands worked me over; every place that I could have possibly stashed anything as small as a pen-knife. This included some uncomfortable areas, but I took some solace in the fact that I knew Chail was straight. He took my switchblade and stood back, satisfied.

"Done? Can we talk now?" There was a pause.

"Stay there." He opened the door and peaked out, looking both ways down the alley. He returned and poked around the entrance for a bit, knocking at one of the ventilation shafts. "Alright then..." He moved to stand in front of me and a flashlight came on at the end of his rifle. I squinted at the light, but he turned it to the ceiling to cast a more general illumination over the room.

"There. Listen, I know this disturbance has got you worked up, and there are probably Enforcers around and worse, but really... I'm your... One of your most valued customers, not to mention a decently good friend of yours. I think we can make a simple transaction without going through this, right? Is everything okay n-" Chail interrupted me. That was not unusual, but what he's said was.

"Shut up. You're sounding more like me than I do. What is it that you want?" I was put into a stunned silence. I recovered soon after for fear of wasting his time.

"Um, right. Well, I was thinking about your offer of new items, and I decided I could really use several new pieces." He relaxed a bit now that we we're talking about regular things again. He even reached up to scratch the back of his head with his Kevlar-Covered hands.

"Sure... What did you have in mind? As I said, I've got quite the selection after my last shipment, so just name it."

I ended up getting a new antique pistol: a .55 caliber from the twenty second century. Strangely enough, they called it "The Enforcer" back then. The name made me sick, but I didn't want the "Desert Eagle" which was the earlier model. Not enough power in it. I picked up as much ammo as I could carry in the small pack I got from him; sixty shots with the Enforcer, and four recharges for my Tech-Blade. I also availed myself of two canisters of Blood-Smog, and two Flash Bangs. These topped off the pack.

For new apparel, I chose more leather. I thought to myself when choosing it that I should, in all likelihood, be sick of leather by now. This new outfit however was a bit more rugged, and a bit less drab. It was partially studded and came in sheets like layers of skin. It was held together by at least twenty belts and as many buckles. I only needed to undo a few of them to get in and out of the thing though; that, I was thankful for. Over it, I donned a black leather coat that was open in the front and flared out in the back. I didn't know how cold it would be, but it was dark on the other side. Wearing a shroud of black would be good, and it would protect against the wind, as well as any brambles in that forest.

I was very satisfied with my new armament, and gave the air a couple swift kicks with my new boots. Chail was pleased as well. I would owe him money for the next eight years for this. He asked me several times what it was all for, but I remained silent about the anomaly. He knew something was up, but I doubted he knew what was going on.

"You sure you're alright out there? You know, if you're in trouble, I could help. Is it Justin's gang again?" I shook my head and laughed at the comedy of his suggestion. Justin couldn't matter less.

"Don't flatter them so. No, that won't be necessary. I'm going to be away for a while. I don't know how long, but don't worry, I'll get your money." It was his turn to chuckle.

"You always do eventually, my friend... Well, I suppose I'll give up trying to find out what it is that's got you so motivated, but I wish you luck with it." I gave him a knowing nod.

"Thank you." I started off back down the alley, taking care to keep low and to the shadows. Being caught out of your civilian jumpsuit in public was illegal. I thought I could make it back to the anomaly before they could catch me though. And so armed, I set off for the hospital. Poor Rorick wouldn't know what madness had claimed me, but at least I was getting out of this cesspit, one way or another, no matter what the anomaly actually did.