Floor 21- Dark Angel Read online

  FLOOR 21

  Dark Angel

  by

  Jason Luthor

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, places, events, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  No part of this work may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission of the publisher.

  CONTENTS

  Tommy’s Recording 01

  Dodger’s Recording 01

  Mike’s Recording 01

  THE DARKNESS

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  01

  Tommy’s Recording 02

  Dodger’s Recording 02

  Mike’s Recording 02

  Tommy’s Recording 03

  Watson’s Recording 01

  Tommy’s Recording 04

  PRELUDE TO WAR

  Dodger’s Recording 03

  Tommy’s Recording 05

  Dodger’s Recording 04

  Mike’s Recording 03

  Tommy’s Recording 06

  Mike’s Recording 04

  Tommy’s Recording 07

  Dodger’s Recording 05

  Tommy’s Recording 08

  NEGOTIATIONS

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  02

  Mike’s Recording 05

  Tommy’s Recording 09

  Tommy’s Recording 10

  Watson’s Recording 02

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  03

  Mike’s Recording 06

  Dodger’s Recording 06

  Tommy’s Recording 11

  Dodger’s Recording 07

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  04

  IN FIRE

  Tommy’s Recording 12

  Mike’s Recording 07

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  05

  Tommy’s Recording 13

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  06

  Mike’s Recording 08

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  07

  Dodger’s Recording 08

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  08

  Mike’s Recording 09

  Tommy’s Recording 14

  Battle of Central Debriefing

  Tommy’s Recording 15

  OF OLD ACQUAINTANCES

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  09

  Dodger’s Recording 09

  Tommy’s Recording 16

  Mike’s Recording 10

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  10

  Tommy’s Recording 17

  Mike’s Recording 11

  Jackie’s Recording 01

  Tommy’s Recording 18

  Dodger’s Recording 10

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  11

  Jackie’s Recording 02

  A GOLDEN JACKAL

  Mike’s Recording 12

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  12

  Mike’s Recording 13

  Tommy’s Recording 19

  Tommy’s Recording 20

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  13

  Tommy’s Recording 21

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  14

  Tommy’s Recording 22

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  15

  Tommy’s Recording 23

  Jackie’s Recording 03

  Jackie’s Recording 04

  Tommy’s Recording 24

  Jackie’s Recording 05

  A HOUSE DIVIDED

  Mike’s Recording 14

  Dodger’s Recording 11

  Mike’s Recording 15

  Jackie’s Recording 06

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  16

  Dodger’s Recording 12

  Watson’s Recording 03

  Mike’s Recording 16

  Personal Recording of Devleena Kumar 01

  Excerpt from “On Purity,” by Yousef Suliman 01

  Dodger’s Recording 13

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  17

  Tommy’s Recording 25

  Intercepted Broadcast from the Tank 01

  Jackie’s Recording 07

  Jackie’s Recording 08

  Personal Recording of Devleena Kumar 02

  Excerpt from “On Purity,” by Yousef Suliman 02

  Watson’s Recording 04

  Jackie’s Recording 09

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  18

  Jackie’s Recording 10

  Jackie’s Recording 11

  Personal Recording of Devleena Kumar 03

  Intercepted Broadcast from the Tank 02

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  19

  Excerpt from “On Purity,” by Yousef Suliman 03

  Mike’s Recording 17

  Tommy’s Recording 26

  Jackie’s Recording 12

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  20

  Jackie’s Recording 13

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  21

  Mike’s Recording 18

  Jackie’s Recording 14

  Jackie’s Recording 15

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  22

  Tommy’s Recording 27

  SECRET ON SECRETS

  Tommy’s Recording 28

  Dodger’s Recording 14

  Personal Recording of Devleena Kumar 04

  Mike’s Recording 19

  Jackie’s Recording 16

  Jackie’s Recording 17

  Watson’s Recording 05

  Mike’s Recording 20

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  23

  Jackie’s Recording 18

  Jackie’s Recording 19

  Dodger’s Recording 15

  Jackie’s Recording 20

  THE DOGS OF WAR

  Jackie’s Recording 21

  Personal Recording of Devleena Kumar 05

  Mike’s Recording 21

  Jackie’s Recording 22

  Tommy’s Recording 29

  Jackie’s Recording 23

  Tommy’s Recording 30

  Jackie’s Recording 24

  Tommy’s Recording 31

  Jackie’s Recording 25

  Tommy’s Recording 32

  Jackie’s Recording 26

  Tommy’s Recording 33

  Jackie’s Recording 27

  Jackie’s Recording 28

  Jackie’s Recording 29

  Dodger’s Recording 16

  WHAT HAPPENED THAT DAY

  Highpoint Waystation Log 182,511

  Erin’s Recording 01

  Last Testament of Ishara Suliman 01

  Dodger’s Recording 17

  Highpoint Waystation Log 182,512

  Erin’s Recording 02

  Last Testament of Ishara Suliman 02

  Dodger’s Recording 18

  Tommy’s Recording 34

  Personal Recording of Devleena Kuma
r 06

  Highpoint Waystation Log 182,513

  Dodger’s Recording 19

  Last Testament of Ishara Suliman 03

  Tommy’s Recording 35

  Highpoint Waystation Log 182,514

  Personal Recording of Devleena Kumar 07

  Last Testament of Ishara Suliman 04

  Jackie’s Recording 30

  Last Testament of Ishara Suliman 05

  Jackie’s Recording 31

  Tommy’s Recording 36

  Jackie’s Recording 32

  Last Testament of Ishara Suliman 06

  Jackie’s Recording 33

  Dodger’s Recording 20

  Jackie’s Recording 34

  Last Testament of Ishara Suliman 07

  Jackie’s Recording 35

  Personal Recording of Devleena Kumar 08

  Tommy’s Recording 37

  Jackie’s Recording 36

  Personal Recording of Devleena Kumar 09

  Erin’s Recording 03

  Jackie’s Recording 37

  Erins’s Recording 02

  Dodger’s Recording 21

  Erins’s Recording 03

  THE DARK ANGEL

  Jackie’s Recording 38

  Personal Recording of Devleena Kumar 10

  Jackie’s Recording 39

  Erin’s Recording 04

  Personal Recording of Devleena Kumar 11

  Tommy’s Recording 38

  Erin’s Recording 05

  Dodger’s Recording 22

  Personal Recording of Devleena Kumar 12

  Dodger’s Recording 23

  Jackie’s Recording 40

  Dodger’s Recording 24

  Personal Recording of Devleena Kumar 13

  Tommy’s Recording 39

  Dodger’s Recording 25

  Personal Recording of Devleena Kumar 14

  Erin’s Recording 06

  Personal Recording of Devleena Kumar 15

  Tommy’s Recording 40

  Dodger’s Recording 26

  Tommy’s Recording 41

  Jackie’s Recording 41

  I AM THE FIRE

  Jackie’s Recording 42

  Jackie’s Recording 43

  Jackie’s Recording 44

  Jackie’s Recording 45

  Tommy’s Recording 42

  Jackie’s Recording 46

  Tommy’s Recording 43

  Erin’s Recording 07

  Jackie’s Recording 47

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh

  24

  Dodger’s Recording 27

  Jackie’s Recording 48

  Jackie’s Recording 49

  Tommy’s Recording 01

  Well, I guess it’s been a while since I recorded. Maybe that comes with the territory when you’re starting to build a new life for yourself. Also, to be honest, I just couldn’t stick with doing the audio recordings after leaving the Tower. Not after what . . . after what happened to Jackie. I just didn’t feel like I had it in me, whatever ‘it’ is. But, I guess we’ve been here in the city for a while now, and I don’t think that’s going to change. So, I guess it’s time I got caught up on this whole recording thing. Funny. Jackie would probably approve of that.

  So, let’s see . . . First thing’s first, I guess. What happened to us right after we left the Tower. Well, we set out . . . west, I think. It’s hard to say. I’d never been out in the world before. None of us from the Tower had, so it’s not like we had a map or anything to go by. Plus, it’s so dark around the Tower. You don’t realize that until you’ve put some distance between you and it, but that fog—the Darkness—doesn’t actually cover the whole world. It fades the further away you get from the Tower, and we think that’s because of how concentrated the Creep is around it. What I do know is that it covers a lot of ground and makes it hard to see very far in any direction, but once you get out of it . . . Well, things aren’t great, but they do get better.

  For the first few weeks after we left the Tower, we just wandered. The wrong way, as it turns out. The first week out, we didn’t actually have any sort of plan. We just took the nearest street and followed it. There wasn’t much alive anywhere we went, and honestly, it was pretty depressing. I mean, at least I had Dodger and Mike with me. Well, I guess it’d be wrong to ignore what Dr. Watson did for us. You see, the world outside the Tower’s in pretty bad shape. What makes the Tower so deadly is all that Creep trapped together in those halls. There’s plenty of it out in the streets, but it’s not so clustered together. At least, most of the time. You get a little deeper into the city, start going into buildings or alleys, and things can get pretty sticky. It’s a good thing that Dodger and Mike’ve really come together as far as keeping their heads on when things get tough. Mike especially. I mean, ever since the doc started giving him meds, Mike’s gone back to his old self, the way he used to be before he got all shook up with his powers.

  Anyway, we had more than our share of shootouts just trying to survive once we got out into the world. The city’s got Pocket Space generators, just like in the Tower, so we were able to scavenge whatever we could while we were wandering. We were covering a few miles a day, so we were making pretty good time. At night, we’d settle in wherever we could. That’s where Watson really saved our skins. The guy’s . . . weird. He claims he’s a few hundred years old, but it doesn’t look like he can’t remember anything from more than a few years back. That doesn’t mean he’s forgotten how to use his tech. At night, he’d set up these poles. I’m not sure how they work, but they create a field that pushes back the Creep. The doc told me it’s how he survived in his lab for all those years. I don’t really understand all the details, but I didn’t complain about having a way of staying safe at night.

  And staying safe wasn’t always easy. There are parts of the city where the Creep’s everywhere, and other parts where it’s thinned out. It’s easier to spot danger zones when you’re in the city, at least. You can always see them in the distance, these huge tendrils wrapping around towers and skyscrapers. They’re as thick as buildings themselves, but the Creep doesn’t normally get that big, so they’re easy to avoid. Still, when you’re out there, wandering in a dead city, of course you get nervous. Close to the Tower, you’re still under a black fog, even during the daytime. And when night comes, it doesn’t matter where in the city you are. It’s almost impossible to get around without a flashlight.

  See, there’s no power running out there. Not for the most part, anyway. At least, in the Tower, you’d have hall lights on, or open wires sparking. Outside, when it gets dark, all you can see is the five feet in front of you that your flashlight lets you see. I’m not sure what’s scarier than seeing a Creeper rushing at you from out of the pitch dark. Yeah, they’re out there too. Lots of them. You don’t find a lot of them in the streets, but there’s plenty in the buildings. Anytime you start scavenging, it’s the one thing you’ve got to look out for. But, still, we survived. Thank the Builders.

  Anyway, I’m not sure what I was expecting from the city. Honestly, it was impossible to make any predictions. We’d lived our whole lives in the Tower. Watson kept insisting we’d find people, but I had my doubts. Well, I’m pretty glad to say I was wrong. We found some.

  We were walking for more than a week before the Darkness really started to clear. Once you get out of it though, things lighten up, and that’s when you notice the clouds. They’re there all the time, just this wall of red tinted clouds in the sky. Still, every once in a while, they break. It doesn’t happen very often, but when it does, you’ve got to take a moment and just appreciate it. The sun, I mean. It’s the best feeling in the world to suddenly feel your face warming up under clear sunlight. There’s never a time when it doesn’t feel amazing.

  If nothing else, that kept us going, that little bit of hope that things were better out in the world than they were in the Tower. More than anything else, I was hoping we’d find people, but nobody lives in the shadows of the Tower. We found
that out the hard way, after wandering west for so long. We’d probably been wandering for more than a week before we stumbled on them. People. Well, it’s more like they found us. We’d been walking the streets like any other day when we started hearing noises. Suddenly, people were springing out of doors and looking down on us from windows. And, of course, they had guns. I’m not sure I wasn’t expecting them to be armed, but it’s not like it mattered. When we stumbled on the survivors living out there, we found a lot of them. We were easily outnumbered ten to one.

  But, if you want to know the truth, then I honestly don’t think I was in any condition to fight back, anyway. These were the first people we’d met since leaving the Tower. They were men and women, their faces covered with scarves or goggles, and their hands covered with gloves that looked like they’d been passed down for a hundred years. But they were people. It’s what Jackie’d wanted to know all along. Was there anyone out there? Anyone who knew how this had all started?

  Well, after taking us in and locking us up for a while, they realized we weren’t out to steal their stuff, and we realized they didn’t actually know a lot about how the world had fallen apart. As it turns out though, people were doing alright. We found out there was a whole community of them getting by. Dozens of colonies, actually, all across what’s left of the city, or what they called the Deadlands. They used the rooftops to travel whenever they could, and when that wasn’t possible, they’d learned how to survive on the streets. At night, they’d stay locked up in their buildings. These guys had full patrols and everything. Some survivors lived in single apartments, and others had whole blocks locked down. They traded with each other to get by. Still, there was one place in the whole community that everyone couldn’t stop talking about. It was the one place that really got the survivors excited. It was a part of the city they said was like nowhere else. Humanity’s last, real city.

  Central Freedom.

  Dodger’s Recording 01

  Tommy told me he’d started recording again. I think it’s funny how it just made me want to do the same thing. It’s kind of like learning how to ride a bike again or something, you know? Like that fun hobby you forget for a while, but you never really forget about?

  Yeah. It’s kinda like that. So. It’s been a while. Like, a long while. Like . . . eight months, maybe?

  Damn. Nine months. Nine months since we said goodbye to Jackie. Since we left the Tower. And now we’re here, in Central Freedom. I guess I should explain that, right? Okay, so, Central Freedom’s this place, on an island. Well, it’s more like it is the island. All 13 miles are covered by buildings and skyscrapers. But really, when you’re talking about Central Freedom, what people really get excited about is the Green Zone. So, the Green Zone’s a few miles of what used to be a park but that’s now the heart of Central. See, a long time ago, the zone is where people met up when the city was falling to the Creep. It’s where they originally came together and organized.