Authors: Al K. Line
"Well, let's hope he manages to get back home somehow. God, this rain's freezing," said Dale, turning his back on the entry. He looked the opposite of the way he acted.
It was obvious to Amanda he was just trying to be tough, but the set of his shoulders gave away how concerned he was. Amanda knew that Dale was trying to give her the choice, telling her that if she didn't want to get Wozzy then he would understand. He knew as well as she did that nothing good could come of them stepping even a single foot inside the gate.
"Dale, it's okay. We can't leave him here. And besides, where would we go anyway? We need to get a Hexad, find a way to get home."
"Yeah, Dale, that's seriously uncool, dude. He's jut a cat. We have to go save him."
"I know, I was just... Ah, forget it, but it's the 'save' bit that has me worried. What exactly are we expecting to find in there anyway?"
"I guess we'll find out soon enough," said Amanda. She stepped past the entrance, half expecting something terrible to happen the moment she did so. She sighed with relief when all that happened was that she stood in another puddle.
Well, guess I can't get any wetter now. That's something at least.
They held hands, Amanda in the middle, Dale on the left, Peter on the right, and they walked up the drive, now hidden beneath a torrent of water, turning the compacted earth into a shallow river that washed leaves against their socks.
Then thunder cracked and lightning flashed.
"Seriously? Come on!" Dale scowled at the sky. It thundered again.
Outta My Way
37 Years Future
The rain continued to pour from the sky like God had emptied his bathwater directly onto their heads. The day turned to gray dusk as clouds built; thunder and lightning got closer and closer. The wind tore at the trees, stripping the remaining leaves from gnarled branches covered in dark green lichen, freezing them through their soaked clothes.
Wozzy was nowhere to be seen. Amanda knew he could be a few feet away and they'd never see him. What did cats do in the rain? They hated water, didn't they? Would he climb a tree? Look for shelter somewhere? Or just sit there and moan about the weather like nearly every other person in the country was probably doing right about now?
"He could be anywhere," shouted Amanda above the noise. Her hair was flat to her head, sticking to her eyes and getting in her mouth, making it hard to speak.
"I know. How are we going to find him in this?" shouted back Dale, having the same issue with his hair.
"Wozzy, here boy," screamed Peter, his voice drowned out by a loud crack of thunder that shook their bones.
"He's not a dog, I don't think cats come when you call them," said Amanda.
"Well, maybe you should have trained him better then," accused Peter.
"Hey, that's not fair. We didn't even know we had a cat until this morning," said Amanda defensively.
"Yeah, well, that's no excuse," said Peter, before he turned to look back the way they'd come.
Dale rolled his eyes at Amanda. Peter could definitely be a little funny about things at times.
"Guys. Guys! Look out." Peter shoved Amanda to the side before she could react, and Dale dove for the leaf-covered lawn just before a huge white van hit him. The vehicle carried on going, hardly surprising as it was doubtful they would have been seen — one headlight was flickering, the other lighting up the opposite side of the flowing drive.
"Dale, Dale, are you okay?" Amanda ran to him and helped him to his feet. He was covered in leaves and spat one out, then peeled more off his face like soggy plasters.
"Yeah. That guy almost ran us over." Amanda gave him a "look," at the choice of word. "Um, that driver, could have been a man or a woman, nearly ran me over."
"That's better," said Amanda, smiling. "I was just messing with you. Are you sure you're okay? That was a close one."
"I'm fine. It's not like I could get any wetter. Let's hope he, um, the driver, doesn't meet Wozzy on the way."
"That looked just like a psych ward van," said Peter, staring after the vehicle, now lost apart from two faint red glows from the rear fog lights.
I wonder if it's impolite to ask how he knows?
"How do you know?" asked Dale.
So much for tact.
"Let's just say I am a man of the world and have knowledge of many things," said Peter. He squeezed water out of his beard then walked after the van.
"Where are you going?" asked Dale as he picked leaves from his hair, staring at them like they had something to say about why they were there.
"To see where it goes, to see what's happening, and to find Wozzy. You coming?"
Dale and Amanda exchanged glances; Dale shrugged — what choice did they have? They followed Peter.
~~~
"Stop," whispered Peter, his voice just about audible now the rain had died down, the storm seemingly passing as soon as it had arrived. All that remained was a light drizzle — even the clouds began to part, warming the air, their surroundings now visible.
Amanda and Dale looked where Peter's gaze was held fast. The rain stopped just as the driver side door to the van opened, sunlight highlighting the scene as though it was too important to be missed. As Amanda watched, she could only assume that God was playing some kind of cruel trick on her. The torrential rain and semi-darkness would have been much better.
As the driver side door opened, Amanda's attention was drawn to the rear of the van where the double doors banged open, and an old man stepped down carefully. He was immaculately dressed in a simple, yet clearly expensive suit. He stared up at the sky as if daring it to ruin his clothes, seemingly confident in the knowledge that no such injustice would occur. But it wasn't the man that held her attention, it was the sight of her, or more precisely three of her, shuffling to the edge of the van before they jumped down, aided by the man.
Each of them was shackled at the ankles and cuffed at the wrists, but they didn't appear to need it — their eyes were vacant, jerky movements rigid and automated. Each wore an outfit that Amanda knew she could find in her very own wardrobe.
"It's... It's me. Three of me."
"Come on, we need to get out of here. Quick." Dale grabbed Amanda by the arm and pulled her away from their hiding place behind the tree, dragging her back toward the entrance.
Peter took her other hand that still clutched the spent Hexad, clearly agreeing wholeheartedly with Dale.
"Let go of me," hissed Amanda, "we can't leave now, you saw that. It's me! Let me go." Amanda's voice was getting dangerously loud. All it would take was for the man leading the Amandas toward the very imposing stone steps of what looked like some kind of old manor house to hear and they would be discovered.
"Amanda, we aren't going, we're just moving away. Look, if that guys sees us then it won't be easy to..." Dale's eyes went wide with shock as he turned back toward the building and the people. "Oh shit."
Amanda and Peter turned to see what the problem was.
"Wow! Um, he's big," noted Peter with admiration.
"It's Laffer, I just know it. I bet that's Hector. It's the people from what happened before, only different. Oh, no, he's seen us."
The giant, easily seven feet tall and looking as solid and gnarled as the trees lining the drive but a lot hairier, slammed the van door shut and ran to the back, saying, "People. Laffer get people," as he turned to the old man leading the women toward the moss-covered steps. The man stopped and looked, face changing from neutral to a hint of a smile as he locked eyes with Amanda.
They made eye contact for a fraction of a second, but it was as if time stood still for Amanda. She knew to the very center of her being that this was not a nice man and this was the man, or a version of him at any rate, that had been the one responsible for what Tellan had called The Factory, where endless lines of Amandas were treated as nothing more than cattle, there to provide the key ingredient that made Hexads function. Now here he was, only different. Just like she supposed she and Dale, Peter too, even the damn cat, were.
This was a different reality, a different universe. A different set of problems.
"Run, what's the matter with you?" shouted Dale right into her ear, as he dragged her away, trying to move fast, but her attention was consumed by the man she suspected was Hector.
"It's them," said Amanda without emotion.
They ran. The giant ran after them, huge strides eating up the gap like a record-holding 100-meter sprinter.
"What the hell is going on here?" huffed Peter, slowing already, his body unused to anything more energetic than a leisurely stroll.
"It's happening all over again. They're collecting Amandas. We have to stop them," said Amanda. Nonetheless, she turned to face forward and picked up the pace. The giant was closing the distance, fast.
Where are we running to? Where is there to go?
Meow.
Amanda turned to the right as Wozzy darted out from the long grass looking as terrified as she felt. He was soaked through and so dirty he would be licking himself for a week unless he fancied a quick shower. He ran after them, angling sideways across the sodden mud, jumping puddles and darting around piles of leaves.
The giant was closing in, and it would be a matter of seconds before he could grab one of them. There was no way even all three of them would stand a chance against somebody of that size.
Wait, all three? What about Wozzy? He's small, but he's vicious. Well, it's worth a chance.
"Get him, Wozzy, he's a bad man," shouted Amanda. She pointed at the giant as he splashed through the puddles.
Wozzy looked at her blankly and carried on running straight at her. He leaped into the air even as they continued to run and scrabbled for purchase on her blouse. His claws snagged on thin material and Amanda yanked her arms free from Peter and Dale, handed the Hexad to Dale, then scooped Wozzy up before he clawed into her flesh.
"He's coming, guys, get ready," warned Dale, as he slowed a little so Amanda wouldn't be left behind. Peter was behind them both, his face almost as red as his hair, breath ragged even after such a short dash.
"Wozzy, I really hope you can forgive me for this," whispered Amanda, hating what she was about to do but knowing she was out of options. "You have to get that bad man, get him good." Amanda stopped running, turned and tore Wozzy off her blouse, the material ripped down the front as if she'd been ravaged by a bear. She held Wozzy underneath, his four legs splayed out, claws fully extended. "Sorry."
She threw Wozzy like she was throwing a rugby ball, aiming at the giant, his thick brow furrowed in concentration.
Meow.
Wozzy landed on the giant's head, claws instantly getting tangled in the thick, curly hair. His hind legs kicked at the thick beard, ripped up his chin and tore a corner of the man's mouth. The giant screamed and slapped at his tormentor — all Wozzy did was hold on tighter. The giant spun in circles as he howled and shouted in a voice that alternated between sounding like rocks rolling down a hill and the screams of a person lit on fire — Wozzy was doing serious damage.
"We've got to go. Come on, Wozzy," shouted Amanda. She turned to face a shocked Dale, and Peter, who was bent over double, breathing hard.
"Poor... Wozzy," wheezed Peter, staring at the scene unfolding.
"Poor hairy giant more like," said Dale, smirking as Wozzy went wild when the man tried to pull him off his head.
As they watched, the man fell to the ground, trying to roll around and get the cat off him. Wozzy yowled, jumped free, then scampered straight back to Amanda like a death-giving Frisbee. He turned at the last minute, obviously deciding maybe she wasn't the best choice, and leapt onto Peter's back. Peter reached behind and dragged him around to the front before he slung him over his shoulder.
They ran again, not knowing where to go or what to do, only knowing they had to get away, and soon. Already, the giant was back on his feet, wiping at his face, the blood pouring freely, making it impossible to see what wounds he had.
The sun broke through the clouds again, the sudden burst of light turning the blood impossibly bright, like he'd had florescent paint poured over his head. He didn't look happy, not at all.
"I kill you. I kill cat."
"Let's go," shouted Dale, grabbing Amanda and Peter, heading back to the gate.
Wozzy meowed pitifully as he watched from over Peter's shoulder as the giant ran after them.
"Faster," ordered Dale. "Run faster."
It's Coming
37 Years Future
"Come on, Peter, hurry up." Dale turned and beckoned for Peter to catch up but it was no use, they would have to slow, there was no way he could run much further.
Amanda knew that she would have to stop soon anyway, it felt like they'd been trying to get away from the man she was sure was Laffer, or a Laffer anyway, for hours now. It may have only been a few minutes but the sudden burst of activity, not to mention the surge of adrenaline and the shock of what she had witnessed, were all conspiring to make her body and mind shut down — it was too much to cope with, too much to take in and process without some serious quiet time.
They turned a corner, going down another quiet residential street, moving further away from The Ward which seemed to be sited on the periphery of the suburbs of whatever town or city they were in. The grounds were contained behind brick walls easily ten feet tall, topped with a triple line of barbed wire for extra precaution, and as they'd run along the outside of the perimeter it was obvious that what was behind them was extensive.
Laffer was never far behind but he wasn't moving that fast, he had to keep stopping to wipe at his face — blood pouring from his scalp and forehead blinding him.