Prisoner 3-57: Nuke Town (20 page)

A
sickening smile was spreading across her face.

It
was a smile I knew all too well.

It
was that deranged smile of a murderer.

‘
Well
done, Brother,’ said Rose.

Iaso
spun one hundred and eight degrees. She took some kind of alien sword
stance. I had seen her do this before.  It was a technique
called The Dance of a Thousand Swords. It was a technique that had
killed more people than I cared to count.

‘
You
finally worked it out,’ laughed Rose.

‘
It
can’t be true.’ It felt like my heart was breaking.

‘
Oh,
but it is. It always has been,’ countered Rose.

‘
You
are not real.’

I
could feel my world falling apart.

My
heart was hollow.

The
pain in my chest was immense.

How
could she do this to me again?

Why
did I believe her?  

‘
Bingo!’
Rose laughed.

‘
What
is going on?’ asked Iaso, her eyes shifted from Rose to me.

‘
Please
be quiet. The grown-ups are talking,’ said Rose. My sister
holstered her side arm and placed her hands on her hips. ‘It
took you long enough to work it all out. I even told you that three
of your group are AI’s.’

‘
But,
that means...’

I
thought against the desire to sleep.

I
felt like I was being pulled through a door into a room of darkness.

‘
Yep,
I’m Prisoner X,’ replied Rose. She looked overly proud of
herself.

‘
How
is that possible? You said you were an AI. How could you take over
the game?’

‘
I
know, right? It is very confusing, but for now that isn’t
important.’

Iaso
started to move forward.

It
was a subtle movement, but I had caught it.

‘
I
wouldn’t,’ sang Rose, ‘I could kill you right now,
but where would be the fun in that? You have both done so well. No
one else has been able to get this far. I needed you to get here,
Brother. There is still a job that we have to do. So, don’t do
anything stupid and force me to kill you. Don’t you want to
know about what is happening?’

‘
All
I know is your fucking mental,’ said Iaso.

‘
Language,’
said Rose, with a disapproving shake of the head. ‘Have you not
wondered what the Prisoner Program is? Have you never really
questioned its existence? Aren’t you curious as to why they
sent you, a convicted murderer, into the game? They are messing with
you, Brother. This isn’t an experiment to create the perfect
punishment for prisoners. Do you really believe they would take
murders and rapists with them when they fled Earth? Only fifteen
million people escaped the destruction of the sun. Do you know how
many billions of people died? You really believe they would take a
man convicted of murder on six counts? If you do then you are an
idiot. This isn’t an experiment. It never was. They are
creating weapons.’

‘
Why
would I believe anything you say?’ I asked.

‘
...him
up,’ said Rose.

I
forced my eyes open.

I
must have drifted off for a moment.

‘
Welcome
back,’ she giggled. ‘If you believed me from the start we
wouldn’t be in this mess. I have never lied to you.’

Rose
made a clicking sound with the inside of her mouth.

‘
I
need you, Brother.’

‘
I’m
not your brother.’ I could hardly speak.

‘
Fair
enough, but I do need your help.’

‘
Why
would I ever help you?’

‘
You
want to know the truth. You want to know who you really are. You want
to know what happened to your father. You want to know why you are
still alive. You want to know why they sent you into this game. And
you want to know the truth about your life. I have all the answers.
You can find me at the top of my tower. I will wait for you there. I
have all the answers to everything you ever dreamed of knowing.’

And
with that Rose leapt into the air.

It
was like watching something from a superhero movie. She launched
herself like a rocket. The glass roof above the mall exploded outward
into the clear blue sky, as she flew off towards her towering
skyscraper. I couldn’t believe it. She really was Prisoner X.
Did that mean my sister never existed? Am I really a paranoid
schizophrenic like they said I was? Who am I really? Why do they keep
fucking with my mind? I have to know the truth. I need to know the
truth, but I am just so damned tired.

I
closed my eyes.

I
felt so tired.

I
disappeared into the world of dreams.

Chapter Ten: X Tower

Tired
eyes creaked open.

My
arm was hooked around someone’s shoulder, as my feet dragged
upon the pavement beneath me. I lifted my foot and tried to step in
tune, but my body was just so damned weak. Everything felt heavy. It
was like every tiny bit of energy had been drained from my body. The
person came to a stop. I could feel a hand gripping my belt, just
above my arse, as they supported my weight. Unconsciously, I lifted
my head and looked at Iaso. The alien had a mask of determination.

‘
Where
are you taking me?’ I asked her.

‘
The
only place we can go,’ she replied.

I
looked forward. We were stood directly outside a tall office
building. I had to crane my neck to see the very top. A large red
neon X was spread across about thirty floors. Prisoner X... No. Rose
wanted us to come here. The thing that I thought was my sister was
awaiting me. The illness that lived within my mind was up there. I
knew it was a trap. Iaso most likely knew it was a trap, too, but
what other options did we have? Prisoner X had taken over this
virtual world. Rose had killed all our friends. She was the reason
the woman I loved was brutally murdered. It was her fault that Jane
was dead. I should have stayed with her. I should have protected her.
Rose destroyed everything I cared about. Rose had always destroyed
everything. It was time to end this once and for all. There is no
going back. We came through so much to get here. We just have to put
a bullet in her head.

I
glanced down at the computer tab on my belt.

It
was the remote control device for a tactical nuke sitting in orbit.

What
did I have to lose?

If
we can’t kill her then I will level this whole fucking city.

‘
Let’s
do it,’ I told her.

‘
Don’t
hold back,’ said Iaso, ‘Rose must die.’

‘
The
bitch is dead,’ I replied. ‘She just doesn’t know
it yet.’

Incoming Status
Report

....

Mission:
Reincarnation

....

Ongoing

....

Thirteen Players

....

Submitting Player
Status Information

....Incoming Status
Report...

Police Office

Sly Walker

Level: 11

Missions Complete:
15

Kills: 23

Experience: 230/500

Credits: 800

Status: Killed in
Action...

....Incoming Status
Report...

Secondary School
Teacher

TJ

Level: 7

Missions Complete:
10

Kills: 8

Experience: 100/500

Credits: 290

Status: Killed in
Action...

....Incoming Status
Report...

Earth Force Soldier

Levi Monk

Level: 22

Missions Complete:
30

Kills: 98

Experience: 010/500

Credits: 3981

Status: Killed in
Action...

....Incoming Status
Report...

Dancer

Bella Hughes

Level: 1

Missions Complete: 2

Kills: 0

Experience: 200/500

Credits: 50

Status: Active...

....Incoming Status
Report...

Factory Worker

Saul Duke

Level: 9

Missions Complete: 8

Kills: 15

Experience: 250/500

Credits: 920

Status: Killed in
Action...

....Incoming Status
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House Wife

Jane McCarthy

Level: 17

Missions Complete:
16

Kills: 22

Experience: 100/500

Credits: 1660

Status: Killed in
Action...

....Incoming Status
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Student

Lena McCarthy

Level: 16

Missions Complete:
15

Kills: 23

Experience: 130/500

Credits: 380

Status: Killed in
Action...

....Incoming Status
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Security

Iaso

Level: 18

Missions Complete:
21

Kills: 64

Experience: 140/500

Credits: 3050

Status: Active.....

....Incoming Status
Report...

Earth Force Special
Forces

Clay Evans

Level: 24

Missions Complete:
30

Kills: 53

Experience: 70/500

Credits: 2650

Status: Active...

....Incoming Status
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Student

Robbie Jameson

Level: 1

Missions Complete: 3

Kills: 4

Experience: 340/500

Credits: 0

Status: Active...

....Incoming Status
Report...

Cargo Lifter

Rose Wells

Level: 3

Missions Complete:
10

Kills: 12

Experience: 320/500