Anomaly City Chapter Four

Ishra tries to illegally make it to Anomaly City.

ISHRA ~ NIGHT     

It’s 10:30pm. Curfew has shut down the city into a mask of black buildings and lightless alleyways. The street lights dim in unison, turning off one by one to the drone of a distant clock. Automatic blinds close in every apartment home, including mine. I wait until Father's bedroom light clicks off...and then I'm up.   

I slip out of bed and into my sneakers; standard gray, no laces. I grab my bag from under my bed, already packed. After digging deep into my drawer, I find my Signal Blocker cuff and clip it onto my wrist. It should block the signal on the Birth-chip imbedded in my wrist for long enough for me to leave city boundaries. The metal is ice against my skin. If anyone found me with this on I'd be dead; imprisoned for sedition. This is credit to Father's inability to tell it was right under his nose. For once it has worked to my advantage.    

I slip a magnet from my back pocket and slide it across the handled of the door as I open it to muffle the alarm. Leaving the bedroom is prohibited at this time. I know the rules well. I have to. Slipping across the kitchen, Yale's words are clear in my mind. If she knew what I was about to do now... I shake the thought away. She won't. No one will, not if I'm careful.    

I swiping my emergency key card over the slot beside the front door and wait as it slides into the wall. A dark hallway greets me just over the threshold. In the dark, I feel for the wall, letting it guide me to the elevators. There are cameras everywhere but if I am quick enough the cameras will not matter.    

The stairs beside the elevators are my best bet. The steps are fully lit and I waste no time in following the railing down to the first floor. On the last floor, I shove open the emergency exit door and a burst of cold wind rushes through my shirt and freezes my skin. I suck in a silent breath and skim the streets, soaking in this rare sight. The city is mysteriously lonesome a at night; a mass of thrown shadows on the roads that gleam with moisture from an earlier rain and not a sound is uttered until I hear it.    

It's faint and feeble at first and I nearly miss it until it nears. The sky train churns overhead, rumbling over square rooftops as it wines through the starlight city. This sound is impossible to hear inside the buildings. It would make sleep allusive otherwise.    

Train tracks lead to the departure platform atop a three story rooftop where, during the day, commuters board. I check my watch. I set it for nine minutes. Seven left. The train will be there before me. I can't let that happen.    

My sneakers slap the pavement as I run. My lungs fill with the bristling cold air and an arctic frost clings to my skin. I savor every breath. I hug the shadows, arms pumping and backpack weighing me down, the items inside chattering with every step. I'm so close to the departure platform I can feel it, when something stops me in my tracks.     

Two bright lights flashes from the road ahead and I freeze so quickly I nearly fall over. It is silver, with blue lights, throwing of a metallic luster. Night Patrol. Without thinking I veer into a nearby alley and throw my back against the wall. I hold my breath as their lights inch closer. A million doubts flood my mind; did they hear me? Do they know I'm here? I check the faded scar on my wrist. My Birth-chip is disabled but I wonder if that is not enough. Could they still be able to trace it? My pulse is anxiously vocal in my eardrums. I shut my eyes. Pass over. God, please pass over.                  

I’m so close I can see the train station across the street. I just need to get across the street. I watch as the lights pass by slowly with the patrol car and it does not stop. Their radars have missed me. I know I am lucky. I crane my neck to watch as their lights fade off into blackness once again and I check my watch. Five minutes. Okay, new strategy. Run and don't stop. I make a mad dash for the train just as it curves through the departure station.    

The station is on the roof of a four-story building. It’s a four second trip to the station by elevator. At night, the elevators leading up to the station are closed. But there is a ladder that electrical aids use to climb up to fix broken light poles. I sprint across the street, grab the cold metal bars and pull myself up. The station is empty as expected. But the train is already passing. I race to the edge of the station where the train races by but my stop and my body goes limp as I am met with the face of this metal monster for the first time.     

Anyone can chase carts. The real challenge is jumping on. It looks easier on television. The roar of the train is irrefutable, like the screams of dying machines. It shakes me to the bone. It is a wonder my ears don’t bleed. I doubt anyone can do it. And as the huge metal carts past me, far above my head, I doubt I can do it. But I have to. It’s simple, I tell myself, just do it already.    

With shaking fingers, I change the function on my Dream Screen mobile, scrolling down the touch screen. Come on. Come on. I find Train 32. The address is correct. Set the doors to manual and enter the code I stole from my father’s files. I'm so dead if they find out. But I can't dwell on that now. I push the thought away " far in the back of my mind and press OPEN ALL.     

One by one the doors open wide, revealing the shadowed storage inside. It’s time. Mentally I pick one. I race to catch up with it, a wall of roaring steel. I run alongside it, plant a foot and lung towards it. With outreached hands, I grab the outer handle of the door and cling on. The force of the train jerks me back and my shoulder slams into the cart. Hard. Air leaves my lungs and they tighten from the impact but I hold on tight. Wind pulls at my cheeks and whips hair in front of my face, so forcefully it stings my skin. My heart feel like it will explode at any moment and my fingers have turned to stone with numbness from the cold.    

Below me the station ends and the ground is now stories away. My feet dangle as I hold on tight with both hands. So much for not looking down. Okay, don’t panic. I feel for a ledge with my foot and my sneaker slips against a slim railing. I don’t move until both feet are firmly grounded. I don’t have much of a platform to work with but there’s no time to dwindle. I reach for the edge of the open door. My fingers slip and I nearly lose my footing. Adrenaline rushes through my body. I release a shallow breath. Concentrate. I reach again, my fingers brush metal and I hold on. I hook my leg around the open door and force my body to twist until I can thrust inside.   

I slam into the floor stomach first, my backpack adding weight to the impact. I don't breathe until I feel stable ground under me. I glance back at the outside, my shoes just barley inside the cart, their laces flowing with the gust of wind the train creates and I start to laugh. I did it. I can’t believe that actually worked. Every part of me melts into the floor as I let my cheek rest against the cool floorboards and I can feel my shoulders finally relax. Sweet relief.   

I sit up and squeeze myself between a stack of crates that threaten to fall at any moment. Removing my backpack from my shoulder, I hold it by my side to catch my breath. Outside the open cart rooftops of Industria City pass in a blur of gray and black and the night sky speckles with stars overhead. It is stunning, the stars; a rare sight here.     

After some time the gentle sway of the train lulls me to a tranquil state. I could fall asleep now. Once you've been conditioned not to, it’s hard to keep your eyes open. This train is the only one that passes over a place called Anomaly City. I have never set foot outside of Industria before. Come to think of it, I do not think I have even changed from this same plain-cut uniform jacket and pants before. I dig into my backpack and find a shirt, the most histrionic one I can find. Its sleeveless and a single bright color. There are no designs on the front or anything attached to it. Red. It is incredibly red and that is all. I make a quick change into the shirt and jeans, eat a snack, and situate myself into a comfortable position.    

It will be a long time before I arrive there. I set my alarm for 6:12 AM, approximated arrival time. I fix my bag beneath me as a pillow, and finally I can rest. I try to imagine her face when she sees me, my mother, but nothing comes to mind. And my mind begins to drift to other things. Like Father. I wonder what he will do, what he will say when he wakes up the next morning and all of his plans for me, for my future, are gone.    

Author's Note

Let me know what you think.