Jason Luthor - Floor 21

Most people don’t volunteer for it in the first place, ’cause, I mean, it’s dangerous, duh. But the Creep’s a lot more intense on the lower levels, so obviously that’s why he joined, and he’s been doing it for six years now. Six. He’s going to be the first person to go seven years actively scavenging on a scavenging team. That’s amazing. That’s why he’s a commander. I mean, compare him to Abbott. Abbott’s been scavenging for ten years now, but you know how often he actually scavenges? Like, maybe twice a year. He prefers to “lead,” whatever that means. I guess Abbott thinks it’s his job to tell other Scavengers what to do while he stays safe.

Whatever.

Not Vick. Vick takes risks, and he’s always near the top of the scores. There are only three things guaranteed in the Tower: Death, the Creep, and Vick McGill. Guy’s sharp like a knife, too. Throw out some math problem, and he’ll pound it out like a hammer. Wow. That’s a real Scavenger.

So, guess who led the last scavenging team? I’ll let you guess whether it was Abbott or McGill.

If you guessed Abbott… dude, pay more attention.

Who’s listening to this recording again?

Damn it. Damn it. Damn it.

No. No. I’m not going to talk about this today.

Okay, look, I have to say something about it. I’m going to go nuts if I don’t, and word is that Security’s cracking down on anyone talking about it, so I need to at least record it.

Phew. Okay.

Look.

I’m just saying. All right, here’s how it happened.

No. You know what? Screw it. I’ll just spit it out.

Word is that someone on Floor 7 saw an Angel.

I can’t… I’m going to freak out, man.

Everyone knows about the Creep and the Darkness. You can’t get away from that stuff. Go down a few floors, and bam, there you go. Creep. Take a turn on rooftop duty and look over the edge. What do you see? Darkness, everywhere you go. Nobody in Tower Authority is trying to hide that stuff. They can’t. It’s there. We all know that. They’re a little less tolerant when people talk about Demons. I mean, what else are you supposed to call those things you see when you’re hallucinating off the Creep? Shadow people is the only other name I know, but whatevs, call them whatever you want. Point is, you know why you see them, and it’s because the Creep makes you see them. It’s toxic. It makes you trip. I can deal with that.

But I can’t deal with Angels. I can’t. I can’t.

I’m freaking out, man!

Okay. Context. Talk it out, Jackie, you’re cool. You’re cool!

I am not cool.

I’ve never told anyone about this. You shouldn’t. You’re not supposed to. You’re just supposed to bury it deep down until you feel it pushing up out of your pores. If someone tries to talk to you about it, you ignore them. I mean, Security comes after anyone that says they saw an Angel. They come after anyone that even talks about them! So, even if you weren’t the one that saw one, you’re supposed to just ignore anyone that says they did.

I think I’m calming down a bit. Deep breath, girl.

Okay. I’d just turned sixteen. I was on Floor 5. It was… late. Not after curfew, but a lot of people’d already gone to bed.

Jackie, why are you lying to your recorder?

Okay. It was after curfew. Sue me. See, lots of people like to think the floors we live on are all super-secure, but I know better. There are plenty of vents that go all through the tower. How far down they go, I don’t know. I’ve always been a little afraid to find out. Anyway, I just thought I’d do some everyday stalking. You know, see what goes on after hours. So I get out of the vents on Floor 8.

Yeah. Floor 8. Not Floor 5. Fine. I admit it. I was creeping Mike. Sue me.

Anyway, I’m on Floor 8, and it’s dark. It’s always dark in the halls after hours. Now, I expect if I see anyone, it’ll be Security. They’re hard to miss. I mean, we’re talking about guys walking around in bulky vests with helmets and stuff. After hours, I mean. They leave the helmets off during normal hours. But at night? Imagine looking down a long hallway and seeing a beefy seven-foot dude, wearing a mask and swinging a rifle, heading your way. No thanks, especially when it’s so late that you haven’t seen anyone else in the halls for a while.

Yeah, it’s not exactly something you’re hoping to see. So I’m walking, and there’s nobody around. No Security, no people. Nothing. At first I’m bored. I don’t really know where Mike’s apartment is. I’m just searching, you know. Then I start walking farther and farther down the halls.

Thing is, the Tower’s big, you know? Real big. Some of these halls go on a long time, and it’s not too hard to get lost. Okay, so yeah, I got lost. Real lost. At that point I was just turning corners trying to make my way back. I’m not sure how long this goes on, but I know I find my way into some real distant parts of the floor. I’m talking about places where nobody lives. You can always tell when someone lives in an apartment, ’cause they’ve got that green light on the outside keycard swipe. If nobody lives in the apartment, the light’s red.

Well, I turn one hall, and all the lights are red. Every single one of them, on both sides of the hall, are shining like a road to hell. It extends forever into a blackness I don’t have the brass to try and enter, so I try doubling back around. As I head back into the maze behind me, at some point I make a wrong turn. Again, lost. Then I make another, and another mistake. Soon every hallway is lit up in red. At every intersection I stop at, every direction is glowing crimson, like the walls have been painted in blood. So I do what everyone knows you’re supposed to do, and I start just taking every left I reach. Left, left, left, left, left. All red lights on the doors. No noise. The only thing I hear is my footsteps echoing down the hallway. That, and the sound of my heart as it plays the drums against my chest. Soon even my breathing is picking up, like I’m choking. It doesn’t help that the lights are so dim, since it’s after hours. Then I turn one corner, and I see the endless hallways, with all their doors, come to a stop. It’s a dead end.

But I see someone there, dressed in all white. They’ve got their back to me, and it looks like they’re messing with something in the wall. I freeze, the hairs on my arm standing up as my teeth clench together. All at once my body locks up and my breathing stops, so that the only sound left is my heart. It just goes bump bump as I stare at this person for what feels like an hour. Was really more of a second, but, damn, I don’t know. It was like forever. Whatever she’s wearing is skintight, but the worst part is when she suddenly looks up from whatever she’s doing. She’s noticed me. Then she turns.

I run, or at least I try to. I flip around and start to haul out of there with maximum effort. Bloodred hues whish by me as I super-speed to the opposite end of the hall. Only to see her standing there. Watching me. I juke, my ankles almost breaking as I turn around and sprint away. I hit the juncture and make a right, and there she is again , staring at me from down the hallway. I can’t cope with it, man. I just can’t. She’s everywhere I turn, and I just can’t get away from her, so I give up. I just look at her for a second and blink.

Then she’s gone.

I’m not going to talk about this again. Security’d come for me if they knew I’d recorded this.

Angels don’t exist.

It’s been more than two weeks, and the Scavengers still aren’t back. This hasn’t happened before. They must be having to go deeper and deeper into the Tower to find supplies. Yesterday, for the first time in my life, I heard the morning speaker announce, “ Day nineteen of the Scavenging has begun .” That was so weird. New things don’t happen in the Tower.