John Krygelski - The Aegis Solution

“He’s gone.”

His base camp appeared to be untouched since his departure. Elias checked the laptop to make certain it was still recording the various audio and video feeds, before he grabbed the item he had returned for, the AK-47. He was not at all convinced that this weapon would be effective against the ghosts — as he was beginning to think of them — which he might encounter, but it made him feel better to have it. Shoving the spare magazines provided by Sweezea into his pockets, he struck out for Kreitzmann’s lab.

Frank D was crouched near the first intersection after the turnstiles, at his usual post. He still simmered over the turn of events, angry that he was working for the Man again.

“This ain’t right,” he grumbled aloud to no one. The other two members of the ambush party were hiding across the intersection, too far away to hear his muttered comment.

His angry reverie was interrupted by the scuffling of footsteps coming from the entrance. Feeling the jolt of adrenaline that always came as they were about to jump a newbie, he leaned forward and peered around the corner, keeping his head low and close to the edge. There, tentatively walking forward through the graffitied corridor, was a girl who did not look much older than seventeen. She was slender and blond, and he thought to himself that she was just his type. The thought of turning her over to the Man, untouched, reignited his furor.

He had to admit that their artwork on the walls had a powerful impact on nearly everyone who entered. From the moment the newbies emerged from the last turnstile, they knew they were in a foreign land, a zone owned lock, stock, and barrel by the ZooCity locals. The newbies realized that they were interlopers. He knew that the effect was intimidation, and the desired result — fear. By the time the newbies arrived at the first intersection, they were already broken, ready to submit. Their minds had conjured the worst during the short walk, and when he and his two men stepped out, the newbies were ripe and ready.

Right on cue, as she entered the center of the intersection, his two partners stepped out from their hiding place. The young girl let out a strange combination of a gasp and a muffled shriek. Frank D came up behind her as she stood frozen in place, like a deer in the headlights. He grabbed her roughly, his hands traveling to parts of her anatomy now forbidden by their new alliance.

“Please, don’t hurt me…let me go,” the girl begged weakly.

“Hey, Frank! Stop that. You know the rules,” one of the others cautioned, a sudden expression of worry on his face.

“Screw the rules,” Frank D snarled, talking to his accomplices as if the girl were not struggling in his arms. “I want this one for me.”

“We can’t,” the other insisted, hoping that he did not see the telltale blur, his eyes darting around the corridors.

As the two men hassled, the young girl thrashed feebly, wrapped inside Frank D’s powerful arms, a pathetic whimper coming from her lips. Her movements were less than ineffectual. “They ain’t gonna miss one little girl. They’ll never even know.”

The other stared at their captive, and a glimmer of lust appeared in his eyes. “You don’t think so?”

“Hell, no. Who’s gonna tell ’em? You?”

The other looked over at their companion, a gang member not known for utilizing, or even possessing, any mental abilities. The silent one shrugged, and the second man turned back to Frank D. “I guess you’re right.”

A wide smile spread across Frank D’s face as he effortlessly lifted the girl and walked her into the nearest room, followed by the two others.

Elias followed the directions provided by Wilson. Both Walden and Madison had constructed barriers at the entrances to their enclaves. Thanks to Wilson, he knew the configuration of the entrance, but had no idea what he would encounter, in terms of perimeter security, when he reached the boundary of Kreitzmann’s area.

In his mind, Elias visualized the layout of Aegis as a clock face. With the entrance at six o’clock, he knew that ZooCity roughly occupied the seven to eight o’clock portion of the face. Walden was basically in the four to five o’clock region, with Madison filling the two to three o’clock space. The route laid out by Wilson placed Kreitzmann’s lab and compound from nine o’clock to approximately eleven o’clock.

It was accessible by not only one of the spoke corridors, as the others were, but by two. With no real reason, Elias had chosen the corridor on the left, and was slowly moving forward. His level of vigilance was at its maximum internal setting, his senses so intensified that the sounds of his breathing and heartbeat seemed amplified, and the noise from each careful footfall was almost like thunder to his ears.

The corridors and hallways were still deserted. Elias was relieved he did not encounter some meandering Aegis resident, fearful that, in his heightened state, he might loose a barrage from the automatic rifle without determining if he or she was even a threat.

He neared the point in the corridor where Wilson said the entrance would be, and was reassured to see that it was set up exactly as described. There was no doorless block barrier as there had been at Walden. Nor was there the offsetting serpentine maze with gun slots which Madison utilized. Instead, there was a simple wall across the corridor with a double door in the center. From his current distance, he could see that there were two peepholes, one in each leaf of the double door.

Since his conversation with Wilson, Elias had decided that a direct approach, with a bit of subterfuge, was probably the best tactic for gaining access to the compound and to Kreitzmann himself. With that in mind, he dropped the cautious air of a soldier on a reconnaissance mission and adopted a casual demeanor. Slinging the rifle over his shoulder, Elias walked directly to the double doors and knocked.

Almost instantly, the doors opened. Elias was surprised to see that he was not greeted by some tough-looking guard, but rather by a young woman who could fit easily into the role of a receptionist at a corporate high rise.

“Can I help you?”

Elias smiled. “I’m here to see Dr. Kreitzmann.”

The woman eyed the AK-47. “Of course. But I’m afraid you’ll have to relinquish your weapons if you wish to come in.”

“Not a problem,” Elias answered. “I only armed myself because I hit a few rough patches coming through the facility. I shouldn’t think I’d need them now that I’m here.”

He unslung the rifle and handed it to her. She took it by gripping the barrel with her thumb and two fingers, as if she were accepting his soiled undergarments. Next, he reached into the pocket of his windbreaker and pulled out the 9mm, relinquishing that, as well.

“Please come in,” she said, turning away from him and gingerly placing his weapons on a side table.

Elias stepped through the doorway into a large room, the width of the corridor and at least thirty feet deep. Inside were the side table, a desk with two visitors chairs, and three work cubicles. He noticed that the three cubicles were occupied, two by women and one by a man, all of the occupants at work on something displayed on the computer screens in front of them, none of them paying Elias any heed.

“What’s your name?” Elias asked conversationally as the woman turned back to face him.

“Anita. And may I tell the doctor who is calling?”

Grinning at the surreal formality in the midst of Aegis, he answered, “Of course. I’m Patrick Brightman.”

If she recognized the name, no indication showed on her face as she shook his hand.