Watchtower 11
Jassry Thymes knew she was burnt out and had known for quite a while. How long had she worked on the Wall now?
Fifteen years, she thought to herself as she leaned back in her chair with a sigh. It was nice to take her eyes off of her screens, even if she could only rest them for a moment.
How long was she gonna keep this up? Not that Watchtower 11 was a bad gig; when she’d first started out on the Wall she’d been stuck patrolling the Babylon/Alexandria merger and compared to that this was a piece of cake. Here the most she had to worry about was the occasional suicidal fallout shambling toward the city, and she’d take that any day over the pissing matches that had constantly popped up between her team and the Alexandrian patrollers.
She scoffed. Those Alexandrian bastards always had plenty of gall, she would give them that.
A beep brought her back to the observation deck and her eyes returned to her screens.
“Speak of the devil,” she whispered. Just her luck; the sensors had pinged something just inside their range. It was big, whatever it was, but it seemed to be alone. Jassry studied the dot glowing red amid a sea of black and wasn’t too alarmed.
If you’ve seen one fallout you’ve seen them all, she thought, but went ahead and alerted her supervisor. Whatever this thing was, she knew the radiation beyond the Wall must have at least half-killed it already. She radioed an interception unit to finish the job.
***
Danny Strong was the first of his unit to finish suiting up after the observer had sounded the alarm and made her report to O’Malley. He triple-checked that his Barzo was fully loaded and the safety was off; this was his first bit of action he’d seen since he’d been stationed at Watchtower 11, and he was determined to make sure no slip-ups on his part ruined it.
Once the rest of his team had collected their gear and donned their protective suits, they all stood next to their ATVs and waited for their team leader’s report on the situation. O’Malley quickly walked past each of them, taking in the condition of their vehicles, weapons and suits with quick, expert glances. When she’d finished she nodded to herself and stood between them and the bay doors.
“Alright, team, I’ll keep this short.” O’Malley finally began. “We’ve got one unknown entity just within sensor range. Classification unknown, condition unknown. Just about the only thing we do know is there’s only one of it and there are a helluva lot more of us. This thing’s getting a little too close to home and it’s up to us to make sure it doesn’t get any closer. Understood?”
Danny and the rest of his team barked an affirmation in unison. Danny was glad his helmet’s dark visor hid his face from O’Malley’s scrutinizing gaze; if she could see the way he was grinning she would no doubt have backhanded some sense into him. Danny couldn’t help himself, though… He was actually going into the Wastes! After months of training and painfully slow probationary period he was finally given the go-ahead for active Wall duty. That had been weeks and weeks ago, and each morning he’d hoped he would have the chance to put his training to use. It was finally happening!
At O’Malley’s signal they mounted their ATVs and she opened the bay doors. The engines of Danny’s ATV purred quietly beneath him; he couldn’t help but think it was as eager to see some action as he was. O’Malley opened the bay doors and waved her arm at them and the team shot out into the dim, twilit Wastes. Danny’s eyes were wide beneath his visor; he’d never been outside of the City before and being even this far from home sent adrenaline coursing through his system. He quickly glanced around him and saw his teammates were as jazzed as he was. They too sat hunched forward on their ATVs, their heads turning from side to side as they took in their strange new surroundings. They’d all been trained on what to expect from the Wastes, of course, but Danny doubted any amount of training could compare with seeing the real deal.
The team made a beeline toward where the blip had been spotted, fanning out into standard interception formation. Danny was thrilled to see his team assume formation so flawlessly; clearly all those simulations had paid off! The area just outside the Wall was flat, but as they travelled further the terrain became more hilly and rocky and Danny felt his teeth chatter as the treds of ATV thudded over stone and rubble. Once they’d gotten within a hundred yards of the blip’s reported location they parked their ATVs and dismounted, each drawing their Barzos and keeping an eye on the cluster of hills before them.
Somewhere in those hills is a fallout, Danny thought to himself. A monster. And we’re all that’s keeping it from the City.
He felt the weight of that responsibility, but he also felt more excited than he ever remembered feeling. The team proceeded on foot, staying in a V formation with their Barzos at the ready.
But despite their perfect formation, the team was coming up empty. Danny heard Rorke buzz O’Malley for a confirmation on the blip’s location. O’Malley provided it, along with a request that Rorke pull his head out of his ass and keep his eyes open, and the team continued combing the area.
They reached the cluster of hills and continued until they were virtually on top of where the thing was supposed to be. Rorke gave the word and the team spread out, making sure to stay within sight of each other as their training had taught them.
Danny was still excited, but splitting up from his team added a shot of nerves to the cocktail of emotion swirling within him. He told himself he knew what he was doing and tried to focus on his search.
O’Malley’s voice buzzed through Danny’s helmet again: “Heads up, observer says it’s on the move.”
Danny was beginning to feel a bit of genuine concern now.
Where the hell is it?
Danny heard the rustle in the gravel near his feet, but by the time he turned his head in that direction it was already behind him. He felt pain explode through him as he was struck across his back, his legs folding beneath him as he crumpled. The wind was knocked from him as he hit the hard, rocky ground of the hills and he couldn’t cry out. He thought of the thing which had stuck him and twisted as best he could to face it.
It loomed above him in the gray twilight. His head told him it was a man, but his heart told him it was something else entirely.
Where’s my gun? he heard himself scream in his head, but he couldn’t take his eyes off the thing’s face.
Without a word it reached toward him with shaking hands, twisting his helmet off and exposing his bare face to the radiation of the Wastes. The unfiltered air burned his throat as he gasped, but before he could process what had happened the thing’s hands were gripping the sides of his head and its black eyes were staring into his.
Danny thought he’d never seen eyes like that before, and then it was as if Danny had never had a thought in his life. He’d always been here, hadn’t he? He’s always felt these hands cradling his head and he’d always been looking into those deep, dark eyes.
What was that noise? It was faint at first, like when his neighbors played their music and it bled through the thin walls of the apartment. It seemed to swell around him and he thought it must be drums, some sort of giant drums being beaten for all they were worth.
He was somewhere else then and it took him a moment to understand where. He was in basic training again, being educated on what actually survived in the Wastes and what was only myth and rumor. This wasn’t where he wanted to be.
Where do I want to be? he wondered.
He felt himself pulled further back, to his first interview with the Wall recruiter.
“Why do you want to sign up?” the recruiter asked him, studying him with a stern glare.
Danny hadn’t been sure how to answer at first; his mother had served on the Wall, and growing up he’d always heard stories about the sorts of things she had seen in the Wastes. Danny had wanted to have stories of his own to tell the children he hoped to have some day.
Something seemed to change then. The hands gripping his head softened; the rough palms now almost caressed him. He felt safe for a reason he could not understand and he knew this man meant him no harm.
He was running then, running as fast as he could back toward his ATV. He mounted it and started it up, taking care to go through each step of the process carefully so the man could understand it. He was driving toward the Wall, calling out everything the man would need to know (the turrets, the exits, anything he wanted) and then he was moving through it, his ATV left behind without him realizing it. He raced through the bay and traversed the maze of hallways and corridors that led to the door which opened to the City. He knew the man was running with him, memorizing each step and stair before them. They reached the door and flew through it, into the harsh artificial light and the sweet, filtered air.
He was torn apart then, all the bits of him raining down around him and he thought maybe none of it had been real, maybe he’d never even been born. Everything seemed to rush and spin and something was twisting around inside him and if it didn’t stop soon he’d –
Danny was back in the Wastes, still staring into those damn eyes. He felt himself panting and heard his heart thumping in his ears, keeping time with the drums now fading around him. He still couldn’t open his mouth to scream for help, he couldn’t even pull away from the thing’s hands as they clutched his face.
The thing released him and stood to its full height. He stared up at it, its eyes now hidden in the dull light, and wondered what it would do to him.
With one quick movement it drew a curved blade from a sheath on its belt. Danny felt a scream growing in him, but before he could release it the thing struck him across the face with the butt of the handle of the blade. Danny was unconscious before he felt any pain.
***
Jassry wasn’t sure what was happening. The interception team had been within feet of the blip, but they’d walked right past it. She watched as it began to move for the first time since it had come into range.
“Watch yourself,” she cautioned O’Malley. “It’s moving.”
She heard the team leader relay her message, and only then realized what had happened. The blip hadn’t just moved; it had split. One small heat signature remained where it had always been while a different, larger signature moved toward one of the interceptors.
“O’Malley, we’ve got two unknowns here,” she rushed to report. She felt anxiety starting to creep up her neck.
“What!” O’Malley shouted.
Before Jassry could respond, she saw the larger blip reach one of the interceptors.
“Unit 5 is under assault,” Jassry reported, feeling her cheeks flush. It had been a long time since things had gone this wrong and she’d been spoiled by the last few easy years.
“Jesus fuck,” O’Malley cursed. “All units converge on Strong, now!”
Jassry watched the blips representing the other four members of the team stop in their tracks and rush toward Unit 5. Before they could reach their teammate the fallout was racing away, stopping only to collect the smaller heat signature.
“It’s on the move again,” Jassry relayed, feeling utterly helpless. Her supervisor finally emerged from the elevator, typing into his wireless. Jassry frantically waved him over to her station and together they watched the fallout move toward Unit 5’s ATV.
“What’s it thinking?” Her supervisor asked himself. Jassry’s attention was still fully on her screens, but some small part of her wondered what the supervisor’s name was. Tam? Timbo? Something like that. He continued speaking to himself: “It doesn’t think it can drive, does it?”
In all Jassry’s time working the Wall she’d never once seen a fallout utilizing even the most basic technology, but she shrugged at the supervisor’s question. Right now she had no idea what this thing was thinking.
They watched as the rest of the team converged on Unit 5’s ATV and the sensors registered gunfire.
“Report!” O’Malley roard in her ears.
Jassry couldn’t respond. She and her supervisor watched as the fallout, clearly operating Unit 5’s ATV without any difficulty at all, raced away from the interceptors and toward the Wall.
***
“Report, damn it!” O’Malley roared again.
“Strong’s alive,” Rorke informed her and she felt herself exhale a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. “He’s knocked out good, though. And the thing’s got his ATV!”
“What!” O’Malley couldn’t believe this. “Why didn’t you kill it?”
“We tried!” Rorke sounded as frustrated as she felt. “I know I hit it at least once, but it just kept goin’! France and Whone are in pursuit now, it’s headed for the Wall!”
“France, Whone, report.”
“We’re gaining on it.” Whone reported. The wind whirring around him was muffled by his helmet, but O’Malley could still get a feeling for how fast he was driving through the Wastes.
“Negative, stand down. Retreat to minimal turret distance.”
“We can catch it before –” France began.
“Stand. Down.” O’Malley put as much metal into her voice as she could.
“Confirmed.” France sounded sullen and O’Malley couldn’t blame her. After what this thing had done to Strong she knew all of his teammates personally wanted to take it down, but O’Malley wasn’t taking any more chances tonight.
“Observer, when all Units reach minimal safe distance initiate turrets.”
“What!” A new voice demanded.
“Who the hell is this?” O’Malley growled.
“This is Timbo Gaines and I’m the supervising observer –”
“Great, Timbo, nice to meet you. Now warm up the turrets and –”
“Listen, do you have any idea how much power it takes to fire a shot like that? We can’t use the turrets on a couple of fallouts!”
“One of those fallouts just took out one of my men and now they’re operating a very complicated piece of machinery. I don’t know what’s going on here, but I am not fucking around with this thing anymore tonight. Now fire up the goddamn turrets!” O’Malley was practically bellowing at this point, and Timbo seemed to catch her drift.
“Confirmed.” Thymes informed her. O’Malley was glad to have her back on the line; Timbo had quickly worn out his welcome. The observer’s voice was tight, though, and she sounded almost choked. O’Malley took some small pleasure in knowing she wasn’t the only one whose skin this thing had crawled under.
O’Malley heard the warning claxons begin to sound and felt the floor of the bay shake as the turrets rose from the earth just inside the Wastes. She walked to the bay window and looked out at the deadly sentries; they were massive, hulking cannons, and even the sight of them made her feel more secure. It had been a long time since they’d been put to use, and she prayed the maintenance crews hadn’t been slacking in their upkeep.
“Initiating barrage.” The observer reported mechanically.
O’Malley heard the whine as the turrets loaded their charges over the claxons and saw the great arcs of light emerge from their barrels. They shot out into the Wastes and O’Malley saw their target had gotten closer than she’d realized; the ATV exploded only a few hundred yards away. She turned away from the window and felt her shoulders relax.
“Report,” O’Malley demanded, eager to have this done with.
“It’s still coming!” The observer shouted in her ear.
O’Malley’s eyes grew wide as she turned back toward the widow. She saw a dark shape rushing toward her, then a crash filled her ears and she shielded her eyes against the shards of glass flying toward her.
Before she had time to get her bearings something hard as stone drove into her stomach and she doubled over, feeling the breath wheeze from her lungs. She felt a blow land on her knee and she fell to the floor, still gasping. She saw the thing from the Wastes standing over her then, breathing hard and heavy. O’Malley saw its face clearly in the bay’s fluorescent lighting and if she’d had any air left in her lungs she would have screamed.
Instead, she only fainted.
***
Sirens filled Jassry’s ears and she thought she might be having a panic attack.
The thing was inside the Wall.
Reports were flooding in from all over the compound; it had been spotted just outside of the ATV bay, then running up the west stairs, then someone claimed they’d come across it as they exited the third floor washroom. A hundred other claimed sightings besieged the observation deck from every station and department in the Wall. Jassry knew not all of them could be accurate, but for the life of her she couldn’t tell who had actually seen the intruder and who only thought they had.
In short, Watchtower 11 was in chaos.
“Where the hell is it?” Her supervisor hissed beside her, his eyes scanning various security monitors scattered around the room. Jassry still wasn’t sure what his name was, but she’d settled on Timbo for the moment.
She had no answer for him, as she was asking herself the same question.
Where the hell is it?
***
Hollow McFash had just finished a twelve-hour maintenance shift, and she was more than ready to leave the Wall for the night. She had just gotten her badge ready for the guard manning the exit checkpoint to scan when the sirens began to blare around her. She and the guard froze, staring at each other, and then he nodded at her and drew his sidearm. For a moment Hollow couldn’t quite believe what was happening; she knew the sirens meant the Wall had been breached, but she’d never seriously expected to hear them during her time here. She stared at the guard’s sidearm and some small, detached voice from the back of her mind wondered if it was a Barzo or a Dobber. She’d never had a mind for guns; she could never keep the model names straight in her head.
Suddenly, as if someone had snapped their fingers in front of her face, Hollow came back to reality. She returned the guard’s nod and moved to the case mounted on the wall near the exit. She ran her badge over the case’s sensor and it popped open, revealing a row of several dark, compact stunners. She picked one at random and checked the illuminated display on the butt of its grip. All four bars glowed up at her and the number beside them read “5” in bold. The stunner was fully charged and set to maximum discharge.
Other than the occasional knife Hollow had never held a weapon capable of killing someone before, and it seemed the stunner suddenly weighed several tons in her grip.
What am I doing? she asked herself. She knew what she’d been taught, she remembered every day of training she’d been forced to sit through, but this was too much. She couldn’t –
She shook her head and looked back down the short hallway she’d just traversed. Nothing stirred, but the sirens still tore through the air. She moved toward the guard and his small booth, feeling more secure with another nearby. The guard was on his radio, desperately requesting a status report. The reply he got was short and unhelpful.
“Unknown entity. No reported casualties. Determining location now. Stay armed and remain at your station.”
She and the guard stared at each other again. His eyes were as wide as hers and she knew he was asking himself the same question that was running through her mind: How could something have gotten insde the Wall?
Hadn’t the BID spent more money than she was capable even conceiving of on this system? Hadn’t they made the other Cities’ defense systems sound like toys for children when compared to their great Wall?
A wave washed over her then. There was no water, but Hollow felt herself submerge and heard the sirens drowned out by a new, more powerful sound. She’d never heard anything like it; it was almost like drums, she thought, but not quite. She found herself keeping time to the beat, feeling it move through her to the very core of what she was. She looked at the guard, but he was so far away now. He was staring past her, looking at something just behind her, and his face was blank and his jaw was slack.
Everything was so clear now. Hollow knew that if she could just open the door, everything would be fine. Better than fine, she thought; it would be perfect. She saw herself winning awards and recognition, making discoveries and accomplishing feats that had never been dreamed of before, feeling the hands of her lover move over every curve and contour of her body. Everything she’d ever wanted was right there, just on the other side of that door.
Hollow felt the tide swirling around her weaken and it was as if her head had broken the surface of the water she was drowning in. She wouldn’t open the door, she wouldn’t let it –
She was pulled below the surface again. The drums pounded through her, eradicating every shred of doubt still lingering in her mind. What had she been thinking? She gripped her badge so tightly her knuckles blanched and she took several short, shaky steps toward the door. Why was she moving so slowly? She wanted this more than she’d ever wanted anything.
She reached the door and swiped her badge across its sensor. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the guard, smiling dimly to himself, press the buttons that approved her exit and release the lockout that had gone into effect once the alarm was sounded. There was a hiss Hollow couldn’t hear over the drums and the sirens, and the large, metal door began to open.
Her mind was clear again, and this time nothing struggled to pull her back down. She saw the open door before her and she realized what she’d done. The guard shook his head violently and his eyes grew wide. A dark blur rushed past her, knocking her off balance and causing her to fall to the hallway’s shiny, tiled floor. The guard rushed out of his booth and fired several deafening shots after the invader, but it was too late.
Hollow stared out into the City and felt herself begin to cry.
I let it in.
***
Silence filled the observation deck. Jassry stared at her screens, dumbfounded by what had occurred.
It had gotten out. It had gone around every precaution, every security measure they’d painstakingly put in place, as if it were taking a Sunday stroll.
A fallout was loose in the City.
Timbo pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and index finger. His face was redder than Jassry had ever seen, and she was genuinely concerned that he might be having a heart attack.
After what felt like an eternity he finally let out a long, harsh sigh and glared at her.
“We’re gonna have to call the Biddies.”