Chapter 10: The Monster in the Book Room

Part 2 of executing the escape plan! I really like this chapter.

           Kye felt his stomach lurch as his body smashed through the window. He felt Connor’s arms constrict about his body, preparing for the worst. The sensation of falling was not one that he relished. Yet, it the blink of an eye, it was over.

            Connor and Kye thudded to the ground, and another thud told Kye that Cat had followed suit. But why were they alive? Why were they unharmed? The fall had not hurt any of them.

            His eyes shot open. Kye elevated his head to look around and realized their mistake. They hadn’t fallen out of a building, and those “windows” had not been windows at all.

            They now stood on a sort of metal scaffolding that ran up the side of a concrete structure: the facility. The enormous facility itself was enclosed in a larger building that looked much like a dark warehouse.

            Chernoff stared at the three teens, a devilish smile spreading across his face, through which his rage was still evident.

            Kye jumped to his feet, and grabbed Connor and Cat.

            “It was a trick,” he cried. “Run! It was a trick!”

            The three of them barreled noisily across the scaffolding and down the zig-zagging stairs, Kye in the lead with Shadow trotting along beside him.

            “What are you fools waiting for??” Chernoff screamed in the distance. “KILL THEM!”

            They heard the patter of more feet running on the scaffolding above them, chasing them down.

            Down, down, down they ran until they reached the concrete floor and began running towards the nearest cover they could find. Gunshots rang out from a few flights up on the scaffolding. Kye jumped with every shot, waiting for a shock of pain or a piercing cry from behind him.

            “Head for the stacks of food!” Cat panted from behind. “They have to run out of bullets before long.”

            Sure enough, after several more shots, a few shattering the ground dangerously close to Kye’s feet or whizzing past Connor’s ear, the guns ceased, though the children were only about halfway to their cover. The suited men tossed their guns to the side and started out in hot pursuit of the kids, Chernoff bringing up the rear.

            Kye did not stop running when he reached the stacks of food. He weaved left and right, Connor and Cat following, not daring to stop. There was almost nowhere to hide, save behind towers of bags, boxes, or cans. When they reached the end of the food field, they met the wall of the building. Cat ran past Kye, who had stopped, and made her way to a door in the wall.

            “In there!” she ordered.

            Connor and Kye followed her without question. She pulled out the card that Brevyn had given her and held it up to the reader on the wall; the lock clicked and she pushed on the door, holding it open for the boys, and then slammed it shut behind them.

            Connor turned to the reader inside the room and began kicking it with all his might. It shattered and an alarm once more began to cut through the air; the lights in the room went out, plunging the room into a darkness that was split only by the slow pulses of a red light that was keeping time with the alarm. Connor placed his back on the door, making a feeble attempt to barricade it.

            “What just happened?! What do we do?!” Connor blurted. Kye had never seen him this panicked.

            “We need to get out and get to the PRT line,” Cat answered. “The provision lines are blocked.”

            “PRT??”

            “Personal Rapid Transit,” Cat explained. “It’s how the workers are transported in and such.”

            “And where’s that?” Connor pressed.

            “The station is somewhere in this warehouse, but wherever it is, it’ll be quite a run with them on our tails, and that’s providing we can get out of this room alive.”

            While Cat and Connor frantically talked over their options, the men outside had apparently discovered their hiding place. Banging was heard from without as the men set out to bust the door down.

Cat screamed at Kye for ideas, but Kye could not hear her. He was gazing at the room around them. With every pulse of the red light, Kye looked at the walls. They were covered from top to bottom with shelves of books. Other than this, the room was empty.

Darkness fell. Kye waited

Red light shined and Kye saw that the books were all identical.

Darkness.

Red. All of the book sat with their covers facing out.

Darkness.

Red. Kye recognized the lettering from somewhere.

“Cat,” he said as the room was plunged into darkness one more, “hand me that book that your brother gave you.”

He felt the book slide into his hands, and held it before his eyes, waiting.

            The cover was bathed in red light and Kye studied it. The word “CREATE” shone brilliantly on the white cover.

            When the next pulse of red came, Kye looked up again and saw that the books along the wall were exact copies of the one he was holding. Kye felt a shiver creep down his spine at this strangely foreboding sight.

            He did not have time to ponder this further as Connor was thrown from the doorway and the men rushed through the now unhinged door. Chernoff walked slowly and confidently in behind them, his entrance half-shrouded by the pulsing light.

            “Well,” he said tauntingly.

            Kye could feel himself getting nauseous. The alternating red light and darkness, combined with the panic filling his mind, made his heart pound fearfully. Furthermore, the pulsing lights made it impossible to keep an eye on Chernoff, and he was sure that the man would make a rush for him at any moment.

            But that didn’t happen. Instead, Kye observed that Chernoff had walked to the wall and was plucking a book from the shelf.

            “Grab them,” Chernoff ordered.

            Through the darkness, Kye heard the shuffle of feet as well as a struggle from where Cat and Connor had been standing. He felt a pair of hands grab his own wrists and pin them behind his back. A wash of red light revealed each of the three teens to be detained by a suited man �" Cat seemed to have given her guard a hard time, judging by the blood trickling from his broken lip �" and two men stood blocking the doorway.

            “Well,” Chernoff repeated. “Look where your insubordination has gotten you.”

            None of the children responded; they had stopped struggling, and were now watching Chernoff’s every move. He opened the book to an empty page, extracted a pencil from his coat pocket, and began drawing. There was a tense silence as he walked slowly around the children, hand moving across the page.

            “I can assure you, this next part will not be pleasant,” Chernoff said calmly. “I gave you a chance. I really did. I took you both in. I gave you food, shelter, water, an opportunity to do something great and go down in history with me. And how did you repay me?”

            He stopped next to Connor and his hand halted on the page. His eyes bore into Connor’s as he leaned in close.

            “By causing a ruckus,” he whispered. “By smashing my windows.”

            Chernoff placed his hand on Connor’s arm, directly over the deep gash. Kye saw Chernoff squeeze as a flash of anger cut across his face. Connor’s whimper pierced the darkness as the pain shot through his body; tears welled into his eyes as he squirmed futilely to free himself from Chernoff’s grasp.

            “STOP,” Kye pleaded. Chernoff released his grip immediately; he resumed drawing as he turned and walked toward Kye.

            “And you,” he said. “You’re foolish. You’ve always been weak, fearful, and useless. You think that by all this, you’d somehow escape, boy?” He paused. “You’re not special. You know that, right?” Kye felt the color rising into his face; he could feel the anger building inside him. “Children like you are unstable; you think you can do anything. Let me tell you something, fool. Plenty of children entertain thoughts of running away, despite my generosity. Some attempt it, as you have done. Do you know what I do to children like that? I crush those thoughts out of them, in the hopes that they’ll see the light and be my helpers. But you’ve gone past thinking. You’ve acted on your thoughts. Time and time again you’ve proven yourself to be unfit for life. You’re worthless. Do you see? You’re not special, because I can kill you the way I’ve killed others, and then I’ll forget this ever happened.”

            Chernoff walked away from Kye, he was studying his drawing, as if looking to place the finishing touches on it.

            “And this girl,” he approached Cat, and then spun to look at Kye. “Who is she?”

            Kye didn’t answer.

            Chernoff merely sighed. “It doesn’t matter.” He addressed Cat now. “Such a pity that a pretty girl like you will have to die because of these filthy animals. You were brave to attempt this. You would’ve done nicely among my ranks.”

            “I would never--”

            Chernoff raised the book into the air. The room went dark just before he struck Cat across the face with it, but the sound echoed menacingly off the walls.

            “SILENCE,” he roared. “HOW CAN YOU BE SO FOOLISH?! I’m about to kill you and you have the audacity to insult the very person that holds your life in his hands!”

            Chernoff cleared his throat as he composed himself.

            “I’m sorry it had to be this way.”

            Chernoff studied his picture and nodding, apparently satisfied with his work. He motioned to his men.

            “You may leave now,” he told them, “for your safety. Head back towards the facility.”

            The men released the children and ran from the room without question. The three children dared not move, but kept their eyes on Chernoff. He smirked and walked between them to the door. He turned and faced them, standing beneath the doorframe.

            “This next part,” he said smoothly, “has always been one of my favorites.”

            He pressed the pencil against the bottom corner of the page and quickly drew a symbol. He raised his pencil as a low rumble was heard through the room. The ground shook slightly. Kye couldn’t believe his eyes. He didn’t know what he was seeing. He thought that he saw a black ooze bubble forth from the book and drip onto the ground. The liquid flowed steadily faster. Drip, drip, drip.

            As Chernoff stood gazing at the black mass in his hands, a cat appeared next to him. Kye had forgotten about Shadow, and he now watched as the cat jumped onto Chernoff’s leg and sank his claws in. Chernoff let out a cry before he kicked the cat into the middle of the room.

            “I should’ve killed that animal a long time ago, as well.” He tossed the book into the room and it landed with a clatter in between the children. They all watched in disbelief as the black pus poured onto the ground and began moving upward. Small drops were rising into the air and hanging suspended, or else splattering on the ceiling. Drip, drip, drip. The black liquid was even seeping up through the floor now, as if being drawn from the depths of the earth.

            The three teens looked back to the doorway, which was now empty. Kye wanted to run, but was paralyzed with fear. The mass before him grew and grew and was beginning to take shape.

            He felt someone grab his arm, and looked to see Cat pulling him toward the exit.

            “We need to get out NOW,” she screamed.

            Connor picked up Shadow and fell in behind Kye. The ground was trembling so furiously that cracks were forming, only allowing more of the evil liquid to burst forth and join the shape in the middle of the room. The three of them stumbled through the doorway, trying to maintain balance. Chernoff was nowhere in sight.

            “Where do we go?” Connor asked desperately.

            Cat looked around for an exit. Kye turned and peered back into the dark room they had just left. Through a burst of red light, he saw a hideously large and furry claw form from the swirling dark matter and smash against the ground. Then the scene went dark again.

            “WE HAVE TO GO NOW!” Kye screamed.

            “Okay, okay, there!” Cat pointed to a station halfway across the warehouse and set off running.

            “Where are we going?” Connor called from behind.

            “The PRT!” Cat responded over her shoulder. “I told you, it’s the only way out!”

            The three of them continued running; Kye’s eyes darted all around, expecting to see Chernoff at any moment. But he never appeared.

            They ducked involuntarily as an ear-splitting crash came from behind them; the sound of concrete falling to the Earth resonated against the warehouse walls, followed by a roar that sounded like a wild animal.

            Kye looked over his shoulder and saw a grotesque head the size of a car emerge from the dust. It looked like a mutilated dog, or perhaps a dragon, for when it roared it revealed rows of razor sharp teeth, and a bloodthirsty gleam could be seen in the slits that took the place of eyes.

            Cat screamed and Connor yelled an expletive. A burning sensation filled their chests as they picked up the pace; Kye felt as if his heart were ready to explode. They felt the ground shake as they tried to ascend the steps into the station; the creature was on the move. It prowled like a cat, its hairy body weaving in and out of the food stacks, drawing closer to the children.

            “Get inside,” Cat yelled over the rumbling and roaring of the monster. She held the door for Connor, whose blood was dripping to the floor again thanks to Chernoff, and closed it after Kye went through.

            Inside the building sat many chairs and booths, even a coffee shop. Cat ran to the back of the room where many square metal boxes sat on a track in the ground. She stepped forward to the kiosk at the front of the line and scanned the card that Brevyn had given her. The screen lit up and countless options popped into view.

            A low growl could be heard on the other side of the wall. Cat, Kye, and Connor looked at each other, silently making a pact to stay as quiet as possible. The growl continued; it reverberated into the very depths of their souls.

            Cat reached forward and tapped an option with a trembling finger. The kiosk beeped quietly, making Cat jump, and displayed a new screen asking her to confirm her selection. She slowly reached forward again and tapped ‘yes’. Without warning, a loud voice emanated from the machine: Thank you! Please step into the Personal Rapid Transit car directly in front of you.

            That was all it took. The creature outside roared angrily and the station shook.

            Cat screamed as Connor herded everyone into the open door to the car. A claw smashed through the wall near the station entrance and the creature reared its head, thrashing frantically to get inside. The building’s stability was faltering.

            “Go! GO!” Connor yelled when they were inside. “HOW DO YOU START THIS THING?”

            The door slid shut automatically and the box lurched forward. It quickly accelerated towards the hole in the station wall.

            “Please go faster, please go faster,” Kye quietly pleaded with the car. He was paralyzed, sitting on the floor clutching Shadow instead of in a seat.

            The horrific creature pulled its body through the gap it had made and bounded for the moving car. It extended its claws and swiped, shattering the back window before the car slipped through the hole and out of its reach. It roared angrily as Kye started weeping.

            The car climbed up an inclined track above the warehouse floor and nearly met the ceiling. Before long, it shot out of the warehouse, and its three passengers were bathed with moonlight. They were high above a circular clearing with forest at its edges; the warehouse and facility sat in the center.

All fell quiet save for the rattling of the PRT as the car sped downward again toward the ground. It leveled near the Earth as it entered the edge of the forest. They were now hidden by trees and darkness.

“I’m so sorry,” Cat whispered, “but we need to jump.”

“What?!” Connor said incredulously. “Are you insane?”

“I didn’t have time to choose where we were going!” Cat explained sadly. “We could be headed anywhere. Something else could happen. We have to get out.” She paused. “I’m so sorry.”

Silence fell again. Connor walked to the shattered window and peered at the forest ground. They were moving along at incredible speeds, though they were low to the ground. He looked out forward and saw a wide river speeding towards them in the distance.

            “Okay,” Connor said resolutely. “We’ll jump into the river. Get up. Now.”

He pulled Kye to his feet. The three of them climbed onto the seats underneath the missing window and waited as they approached their destination. The river was seconds away from speeding beneath them.

Cat addressed Kye. “Give me your bag.”

Kye took the bag off his back without question and handed it to her. She removed hers as well and chucked them out of the window. They hit the ground at the edge of the river.

“JUMP NOW!” Connor ordered.

Connor leapt, and so did Cat. Kye pressed Shadow to his chest and followed suit. There was the quick sensation of falling, and then their bodies were engulfed in frigid water. Kye felt his chest constrict as the water froze him to the bone. His head broke the surface of the water and he gasped for air, looking around and seeing Cat and Connor swimming for shore.

Kye was the last to climb on land. He was shaking horribly and disbelieving sobs were wracking his body and he crawled on hands and knees. Shadow was meowing pitifully next to him. Cat clomped to where they had dropped their bags and pulled out her walkie-talkie.

“Eddie. Eddie!” she barked into it. “I swear to�"”

“I’m here,” a voice crackled to life on the other end. “I’m here. Are you guys okay? What happened? Why are you guys in the middle of the forest?”

“Long story,” Cat grumbled. Her teeth were chattering. “Look can you just lead us to where you are?”

“Yes,” Eddie responded. “Follow that river North.”

“Thanks,” Cat responded. She pulled a compass out of her backpack and tossed Kye’s bag to him. “Get up. We’re almost done, but we have to keep moving.”

Connor helped Kye to his feet again. Kye picked up his bag and Shadow, and began walking, Connor at his side, following Cat along the river.

No one spoke. The silence was only broken by the occasional direction from Eddie. Everyone was miserable. Everyone was cold.

Kye watched his breath swirl playfully away from his lips as he tried to hold back tears. His fatigue made it difficult to walk. Shadow continued meowing sorrowfully against the cold. Before long, Connor removed his shirt; he took Shadow from Kye and wrapped the cat in the shirt. Though the cloth was sopping wet, it seemed to appease the cat, who fell silent as Connor held him.

Kye smiled thankfully at Connor. Kye looked down at Connor’s chest; the gash on his arm and the scars that lay across his chest were clearly visible in the moonlight. Kye’s face contorted with sadness as he looked away. Connor did not notice.

The three miserable runaways walked along through the forest for some time. When they left the edge of the river and headed deeper into the forest, Kye and Connor saw the crumbling facades of buildings. It looked as though this had once been a city, but it was now dilapidated and overgrown. Only bits remained to be seen in this forest.

When Kye felt as though his legs were about to give out, they walked up to a small building among the trees.

“You’ve arrived,” Eddie said over the radio. “Come in.”

They walked up to the door, pushing aside ivy, and entered. A dimly lit room opened before them. A few gadgets sat here and there, littered among the people who occupied the building.

It was cozy and warm, and several pairs of friendly eyes stared at the entryway.

It was silent for a moment, before the people in the room rose to their feet and rushed forward, a billion questions bursting from their throats.

Kye couldn’t hear any of them. He looked to his left, and saw Connor vomiting, with two people attending to him. He looked to his right, and saw Cat collapsing into a chair with a towel wrapped around her.

Kye felt a warm blanket drape around his shoulders. He stood staring at nothing, completely at a loss of what had happened. As chaotic memories swam before his eyes, unanswered questions bounced around his head, and several unknown people stared at him, a single tear slid down his cheek and dropped to the floor, filled with more emotion than words can describe.

And then, as Kye remembered his recent lack of sustenance, he fainted.