The Doomsday Device (Teen Superheroes Book 2) (11 page)

Ebony looked annoyed. “He doesn’t like healthy debate?”

“Freedom of speech ends at the front gate,” Ethan said. “A newcomer disagreed with Jeremiah about three months ago during one of the meals. The next day when we went to eat breakfast we found the new guy hanging upside-down from one of the trees with his throat cut.”

“That’s terrible!” Brodie said.

“As we ate our meal we had to listen to Jeremiah lecturing to us about the importance of truth and justice while this poor person’s body waved in the wind.” He shook his head. “It was sickening.”

Ethan looked at his watch. “I need to get back otherwise I’ll be missed.”

“What do we do now?” Brodie asked.

“You need to find your friend and get yourselves out of here,” Ethan said. “Once you’re out of here contact the authorities and get this place closed down.”

Ethan suggested he return to the compound first and the girls start back a few minutes later. It would appear suspicious for them to arrive together. After Ethan left, Ebony turned to Brodie.

“We need to find where they’re keeping Ferdy,” she said.

“He has to be our number one priority,” Brodie agreed.

They walked back to the compound, entered the building and made their way back down to the main hall. There were people in small groups singing songs. The songs seemed to be about how the New World Order would be defeated by The Chosen Few. Others were sitting around in groups and reading from some of the survival literature.

Jason sighted them from the other side of the room. He gave Brodie a friendly wave and crossed over.

“May I speak to you?” he asked Brodie. “In private?”

Brodie looked at Ebony. The other girl nodded.

“I’ll check on Dan,” Ebony said. “I’ll see if he’s feeling better.”

After she left, Jason indicated a small open room to the side of the main chamber. They sat on two wooden chairs. Brodie wondered what this was about. She hoped their meeting with Ethan had not aroused suspicion.

“We need to speak about our future,” Jason said.

“What future is that?” Brodie asked.

“The End Times are coming very soon,” Jason said. “I know you have powers. You are not like normal people.”

“I’m a little faster than most people,” Brodie said noncommittally. “If that’s what you mean.”

“I’m trying to say that doesn’t make any difference to me. My father has said I must take a wife who is a daughter of Isis.”

“Really?” Brodie said.

I have no idea what you’re talking about
, she thought.

“I have spoken to my father and he supports my choice,” Jason said. “I will be married and you are to become my wife.”

Chapter Twenty-One

My legs were gone. I wanted to scream. In fact I think a sound actually escaped my lips as I stared in horror at the place where my legs used to be. Looking over at Chad I saw he was similarly horrified.

A laugh came from the shadows. “Everyone gets caught first time around,” the voice said. “It’s an illusion.”

It took a few moments for the words to sink in. I looked into the shadows and saw a man sitting back against the wall shaking his head in amusement.

“Wh-what?” I gasped. “What are you saying?”

“It’s an illusion,” the man repeated. “That’s Becker’s modification. Just shake your head and it’ll clear.”

I looked down at my legs. For the first time I noticed I was wearing shorts. How could I be wearing shorts? Even if Becker had some magical ability to sever my legs, there was no way he could make new clothing appear from nowhere.

My legs began to reappear. Like a ghostly image appearing on a film they came back into view. At the same time I gave a cry of amazement – and relief. My legs were not gone. They were still attached to my body. I grabbed them with joy.

Chad was still fixated by the hallucination. I scrambled over to him.

“Listen to me,” I said. “It’s just an illusion. It’s all in your mind.”

“What? No, my legs -.”

I shook him. “It’s not real. Look! Your legs are still there!”

Chad looked down and slowly the terror slid from his face replaced by relief. He ran his hands up and down his legs. Slowly he stood up, looking at them in amazement.

“You’re right,” he said. “Thank God. Thank -.” His face twisted into an expression of fury. “I’m going to kill that guy.”

“Later,” the voice called from the shadows. “He’s the least of your worries down here.”

I grabbed Chad’s arm and slowly led him into the alcove. Two men were in there. One of them was asleep. The one who was awake was sitting back on a bench. He was dressed in little more than rags.

“Thanks for the advice,” I said.

“Advice is free,” he said. “Do you want some more?”

“Sure.”

“Snitches get stitches,” he said.

“Which means?”

“We don’t speak to the guards,” he said. “We tell them nothing. If you snitch on an inmate your life won’t be worth living.”

I nodded. “What’s your name?”

“They call me Drink,” he said.

“Drink?” Chad said. “That’s a pretty strange name.”

The man grinned. In the next instant he seemed to turn translucent then before Chad or I could say anything he turned completely to water. He splashed onto the floor into a puddle. While we stared open mouthed at him, he just as quickly reformed into a human being.

“Still think it’s a strange name?” Drink asked.

“How do you do that?” I asked.

“I’m a mod,” he said. “You are too otherwise you wouldn’t be in here.”

I nodded. I wasn’t about to reveal my powers, but Chad had no such qualms. He held his hands out. In one hand he produced a ball of fire. In the other he held a ball of snow.

“An elemental.  That’s good. That’ll help you survive in here.” He looked at me. “What are you?”

“I’ve got some abilities,” I said. “I might show you later.”

He nodded. “Keeping it close to home. Clever.”

“How did you become a mod?” Chad asked.

“I was in an Israeli jail,” he said. “They made me an offer. I could be part of an experiment or I could spend the rest of my life in jail. I decided to be a guinea pig.” He continued. “I didn’t know the Americans were doing modifications. I thought they were following the UN ruling.”

“What ruling?” I asked.

“Don’t you boys know anything?” he asked. “Sit down and I’ll tell you the facts of life.”

We sat down on the bench next to him.

“You know mods have been around for centuries,” he said.

“You mean, like vampires?” I said.

“Vampires and all the others,” Drink said. “They were the natural mods. As soon as the enlightenment began, people started manipulating the human creature to improve upon it. You’ve heard of Frankenstein, of course.”

“Yeah, but you don’t mean -.”

“It’s a fictional story,” Drink said. “But it’s based on fact. Governments had been experimenting in secret for years trying to create soldiers that would give them an advantage in combat. After WW2, upon the formation of the UN, it was decided to ban all human modifications.”

“So no more modifications were allowed,” Chad said.

“They weren’t allowed,” Drink explained. “But they still happened. Oh, not all countries and not all the time. And it’s a dangerous process. Most mods die within days of the process. A lot don’t last a year. But the ones that do last…”

He pointed to himself.

“So what are you doing here?” I asked.

“All mods discovered on foreign territory are supposed to be in jail,” he said. “You know that? Right?”

“Uh, no,” I said.

“Hell,” he shook his head. “You boys really are green. Didn’t you get told anything?”

“Not really.”

“I was spying for the Israelis,” Drink explained. “I got caught. How did you boys end up in this predicament?”

“A prisoner exchange,” I said.

Drink nodded. “Sounds fair enough. Most governments treat their mods like commodities to be traded or killed. A lot of governments kill foreign mods immediately.”

Holy Hell
, I thought.

“Why are you still here?” I asked. “With your ability to change to water -.”

“A similar deal that put you boys in here is going to get me out,” he said. “My country has a North Korean mod in custody. In a few weeks they’ll do the exchange and I’ll be out of here.”

A gong rang; a long reverberating bell that chimed throughout the whole jail.

“They’re putting the lights out soon boys,” Drink said.

As soon as he said the words, the whole prison went dark. The only light to be seen was from a few random fires still burning.

“When morning comes there’ll be a fight for food,” Drink explained. “It’s every man for himself.”

“Do you mean -.” I started.

“No offense,” Drink said. “I like you boys, but I haven’t eaten for two days. I’m going to fight you and whoever else I have to so I can survive.”

For a long time the only sound was the crackling of fire.

“May the best man win,” Drink said.

Chapter Twenty-Two

“Wife?” Brodie wasn’t sure she had heard Jason correctly. “Did you just say -.”

“You are to become my wife,” Jason confirmed. He looked quite earnest. Almost as if he was discussing the weather. “It has been decided. All that needs to be determined now is when the marriage will happen.”

“I’ll tell you when,” Brodie said. “Never.”

She felt like she was going crazy. Jason seemed like a pleasant enough guy. He even came across as being reasonably intelligent. How could he think it would be okay to be in an arranged marriage?

He looked confused. “What do you mean?”

Brodie remembered what Ethan had said about directly challenging the beliefs of the Sanctuary residents. Despite the apparent freedom they had been granted, their lives still lay on a knife edge. The worst thing she could do would be to cause a fight – especially with the Jeremiah’s son.

She said as gently as possible, “You’re a nice guy, Jason. A very nice guy. But I barely know you.”

“You don’t need to know me,” he said.

“Yes I do. When I get married it has to be for love.”

Jason looked at her bemused. “You don’t understand, do you?”

“Understand what?”

“My father has decided we are to be together,” he said. “He has been deliberating ever since you arrived. He knew you were special. That’s why he took you from the outside world.”

“Jason,” she said. “I really can’t marry you.”

“Why?”

Why?
This could go on all day. Why couldn’t you marry a person you’ve known for twenty-four hours?  If you have to ask such a question…

“Because it’s the wrong thing to do,” she said. “I’m already in love with someone else.”

Jason looked shocked. “I’m very sorry to hear that.”

“You’re sorry…”

“I’m sorry because everyone outside the compound will be dead in a week,” Jason said. “The cleansing is coming. The time for the old era to pass is upon us. A new world, a better world is coming.” He reached out and took her hand. “I’m sorry for you.”

Brodie had an overwhelming feeling that she wanted to punch him in the face, but took great care to keep her emotions in check. She gently released her hand and gave him a small smile, not wanting to completely ostracize him. She decided to try to talk some sense into the boy. “Can you explain to me why it’s alright to kill billions of people? I mean, it seems a little dramatic, don’t you think?”

“The UN has given us no choice,” Jason said patiently. “They have gradually taken over more and more countries over this last year. China and Canada have fallen in the last few months.”

“You’re saying all those countries have been invaded by the United Nations?” Brodie said.

“Yes, of course.”

“What if I were to say to you that nothing has changed in those countries.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m saying those countries are still operating as they always have.”

“I don’t understand what you mean,” Jason looked confused. “My father has been giving us weekly reports on the invasions.”

“Invasions?” This was just too ridiculous for words. “Let me ask you this, Jason.”

“Okay.”

“The peacekeeping arm of the UN is made up of troops from dozens of different countries. Still, it’s a big planet and it barely has enough troops for its normal peacekeeping missions.” She let this information set in. “How could it possibly invade a country like Canada? Or China for that matter.”

“I’m sure they were taken by surprise.”

“Taken by -.”
This kid is cuckoo.
“Jason, it must have been one hell of a surprise. And China has nuclear weapons. It has one of the largest armies on Earth. How could it be taken by surprise?”

Jason shook his head. “I don’t know the details -.”

“There are no details to know,” Brodie said. “Your father is lying to you.”

“You mustn’t say such things.” Jason’s face turned white with anger. “My father was chosen by God! Are you so stupid you can’t see that?”

This was getting
waaay
out of hand. Jason was getting so loud that people were starting to stare.

“I don’t want to offend your father,” Brodie said. “I know you must love him very much.”

“I do!” Jason snapped. “We all do.”

He looked down in despair. For almost an entire minute he did not speak. He simply stared down at the floor. Brodie wondered if he might be praying. Finally he looked up at her. At least now the color had returned to his cheeks.

“I’m sorry I lost my temper,” he said.

Brodie nodded.

“I know you’re ignorant,” Jason said. “Like all the others out there. You need to be educated.”

You’re the one who needs education
, Brodie thought.

“What sort of education are you thinking of?” Brodie asked.

“We have books, videos -.”

“It might help if I could see the whole compound,” Brodie said, pretending to look around. She realized she could pretend to show a romantic interest in Jason, but that might be taking things too far. “I’ve hardly seen any of it.”

“I can give you a tour,” Jason said.