Floor 21- Dark Angel Page 21

  “Wait. What did you say?”

  “I don’t need to eat. I mean, I still like to eat, but I don’t need to. I still get hungry. I guess my stomach still likes having something in it once in a while.”

  “So, the Creep cells keep you alive even when you haven’t eaten?”

  “Remember when I said the Creep cells take energy from somewhere else? I basically get all the energy I need from wherever it is they’re drawing it from.”

  “That’s . . . amazing.”

  Dodger shoots me these wide eyes, like I’m insane. “You’ve got to be kidding me, Tommy. We’re talking about way beyond amazing here. That’s . . . I mean, I don’t even have a good word for that. Extraordinary? Maybe unbelievable? I mean, I’m mind blown right now.”

  Jackie’s eyes wander to the kitchen. “Uh, I know this probably isn’t the right time, but I actually . . . haven’t . . . eaten in a while. I feel terrible for asking this, but could I . . .”

  Cynthia’s already on her feet, with Mandy close behind her. “Oh, you don’t know me yet, Jackie, but trust me. I love to cook.”

  Mike laughs as she walks into the kitchen. “It’s true. She does.”

  Jackie actually heaves out in relief. “Thank the Builders, because I really didn’t want to ask.”

  “But, uh, it’ll take a bit to cook.” I realize he’s shifting in his chair, like he’s a little uncomfortable. “Just, was wondering if you wanted to . . . talk, real quick?”

  Dodger’s already walking over to me and grabbing me by the hand. “I think me and Tommy are going to mosey on over to the kitchen and help Cynthia. Come join us whenever.” She drags me off my feet before I can even say anything, but I’m still able to hear the apartment door closing behind us as Mike and Jackie head off.

  Mike’s Recording 10

  Jackie’s hair is picking up in the breeze as we’re standing on the roof. Not a great view on the top of the apartment, not with all the skyscrapers blocking the skies, but it’s a nice place to catch a view of the street. Not that I’m really thinking about that while I’m staring at Jackie. She’s already smiling at me when we come to a stop.

  “So. Cynthia, huh?”

  “Uh, yeah. Cynthia.”

  She crosses her arms and looks down at the street. “I did a lot of thinking about you while I was out there.”

  “I thought about you a lot too, Jackie. All the time. You can ask Tommy or Dodger. I . . . I must’ve cried about you every night for . . . for like a month, Jackie. I didn’t think I’d ever get over it, but then I met Cynthia, and I wasn’t planning for anything to happen, it’s just . . .”

  She looks over at me. “Wait. Mike. Do you think I’m angry at you?”

  “I just . . . I felt like I had to say something. Explain it, I guess.”

  “Explain what? Mike . . . It’s been how long now? And how many times did we say we met at the wrong time? I was . . .” She laughs. “I was just too young when I met you. We grew up and there was maybe a window where we could’ve dated. Then the Scavengers happened, and David Marshall, not to mention all the death you had to see.”

  “Just, from the second you rescued me, I was trying, Jackie. I feel like . . . Feels like I let you down. Like I couldn’t be the guy you’d met. I wasn’t able to be that until we’d finally gotten out of the Tower and the doc helped me get my powers under control.”

  She smiles. “You were always the guy I’d met. Maybe I’m forgetting something, but I don’t remember you morphing into some weird, abusive guy or someone who stopped being curious about what’s out here. You were always Mike. All those nights talking and crying . . . Mike, I couldn’t really understand what you were going through because I didn’t have to see the people I cared about dying. Not like you. You went through a lot, and you still came out the same person. That says a lot about who you are.”

  “That . . . It means a lot hearing that, Jackie. I guess that’s one thing I’ve never really been able to let go of. Just always thinking that I’d . . . that I’d let you down.” Jackie doesn’t say anything at first. Out of the corner of my eye, I see her take in a deep breath before releasing her arms. They just swing there for a moment before she wipes at her eyes, then she turns to me. Maybe I’m not ready for it when it happens, but suddenly she’s got her arms around me, and . . . I didn’t even realize that I wanted to cry, but I am. My face is buried in her shoulder, and I’m holding on to her. “I missed you, Jackie.”

  “I . . . I really love you, Mike. Not in any romantic way, obviously. I mean, we missed each other when it comes to dating, but you were always my friend. Half the reason I went down into the Tower was for you. There wasn’t a second when I stopped thinking about you and everyone else. And I promise you . . . I promise you . . . there’s nobody happier than me that you’re feeling better. That you’ve found someone.”

  We must hold onto each other for a while before I finally let go. Her eyes are streaked, too, when I finally see her face again. “Think you got something in your eyes, Jacko.”

  She laughs and wipes at her face again. “I can’t tell you how much I miss hearing you call me that.”

  “I’m just glad we got to talk.”

  “Yeah. Me too, Mike.”

  “There is . . . there is something else. Kinda wanted to ask you about.”

  “Yeah?”

  “All those things you did out there . . . lifting a building wall . . . tearing the tops off tanks . . . how do you do it?”

  “The same way you lift your gun. I can just do it with a little more weight.”

  “And the flying? You can really do that? How do you . . .?”

  She taps at the stripped down control panel on her wrist and puts some distance between us. That blue light passes down from her head to her toes, and soon she’s standing there in her armor. “Never thought you’d see a woman fly?”

  “It’s just . . . Man, it’s just hard to believe.”

  She smiles at me. “Some things are worth believing in.” Then she spreads her arms and looks up, and suddenly flames just erupt from her back. A second later, she’s just rocketing up into the sky, spinning circles while she goes making this tornado of fire that evaporates behind her. I just laugh as I see her streaking away, tearing through the skies and burning up toward the clouds. It’s almost unbelievable how fast she is and how high she gets. She’s almost out of view before I see her fire turning back toward the building, and soon she’s flying back toward the roof. The whole time, I’m just grinning. Even from a distance, I can see she’s smiling, too.

  Personal Recording of the President, Gabriel Branagh 10

  It’d been a few days off before we finally get the Dark Angel . . . I’m sorry, Jackie . . . Before we get Jackie back in the garrison. More than anything, we wanted to get her in front of Doctor Watson and Colonel Martin. I figured it was best to cover all of our bases at once. Of course, Jackie was free to bring her friends along. The honest truth is that I wanted them all there, anyway.

  It’s about noon when she shows. In my head, I’m just hoping she doesn’t think this is too formal. It’s not as if I want to scare off the one person who was able to drive off the raiders. I get the notification from Martin that she’s arrived, and when she does show, she’s not flying. She pulls up in one of our military transports, and it’s only a second before her and her friends all pile out of the back. It’s funny. I can see the driver staring at her as she’s walking up the steps to the doors of the Central Primary. That armor of hers is practically silent, but she’s still intimidating. Tommy tells me she’s already a naturally tall girl, but the armor puts nearly a foot on her, and with all that plating . . . Well, let’s just say she looks like she could kick anyone’s ass in a fight.

  “Jackie,” I tell her when I walk up to her.

  She lowers her head, and I can see her eyes narrowing behind her mask when I greet her. “Dark Angel, in public. If you don’t mind, Mr. President. I like my privacy.” She leans into me, as if she has some se
cret to tell. “You know there were already people from the press who followed me to Tommy’s apartment?”

  “They can be a pain, but they’re a necessary part of a free society. Point taken, though. We’ll do our best to keep your identity a secret.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Well, with that out of the way, you’ve already had the pleasure of meeting Colonel Martin,” I tell her as I motion over at Martin. He just lowers his head to greet her. He might not say anything, but I can tell he’s thinking up ways to stop her if he’d have to. He couldn’t, but he’s trying to figure it out. “Anyway, Dark Angel, we just wanted to talk. Get the doc to look at you, make sure everything’s okay. Nothing too out of the ordinary.”

  “I understand. Tommy and everyone else will be able to stay with me?”

  I look past her. She’s brought her whole crew, like I said. “Of course. This isn’t some kind of vetting process. You’ve already proven yourself as far as I’m concerned.”

  “Which means I haven’t proven anything to the people you work with,” she says with a look at Martin. He just stares back at her from behind those sharp eyes he’s always had. “I’m fine with the tests, Mr. President.”

  “Well, let’s get them over with then. How about it?”

  I lead the way inside while she follows behind me. Tommy, Dodger, and Mike have all been here too many times to count. Tommy’s a hero in his own right by now. The militia loves him. Still, it’s a completely different thing to walk into those halls with Jackie in tow. The men and women know what she did. By now, video feeds of her holding up walls or cutting the barrels off of tanks have been making their rounds on the news. Some of the troops saw her in action for themselves. So, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that they all seem to step back as we’re walking through, like the sea is parting. Now, Central Primary’s always a busy place. People are constantly going in and out, checking in with tactical planning or heading out to the garrison to do weapons checks. With Jackie behind me though, it might be the first time I’ve seen the place go dead quiet. Everyone stops what they’re doing as she passes through, watching as I take her through the halls and into the lab.

  When we finally get there, Jackie looks downright relieved that she’s out of sight. Martin looks her way with a grin. “You certainly know how to put on a show.”

  She looks back at him, but she’s not amused. “I’m not trying to put on anything, thanks.”

  “Obviously, you don’t have to try.” She doesn’t say anything, and her friends might not say anything either, but they all glare at Martin. Of course, they really can’t say anything. He’s their superior officer. I guess Martin gets it though. He rolls his eyes before sucking in wind and apologizing. “Look, you’ll understand why I’m a bit reluctant to have you here. I’m sorry if that’s going to cause some friction in the immediate.”

  “Colonel,” Jackie says without looking at him, her eyes staring up to the ceiling instead, “Nobody knows better than me why you shouldn’t trust someone you don’t know. Especially someone like me. I think I know what I am and what I can do. You don’t. Not really.”

  Martin seems to get flustered at the comment, which doesn’t happen very often. He’s not even able to muster up a reply before I see Doctor Watson step into the room. Everyone turns to see him when he does, but the doc doesn’t say anything. Not at first. His face, though. It lights up like a starving man finding food. Watson just walks up to her, his mouth hanging open in this wide smile as he stretches his hands out to her. Jackie looks uncomfortable, which is natural when you have someone coming at you like that. Still, she doesn’t move. She just waits there as he starts running his hands down the side of her arms and walking around behind her. You can hear him chuckling a little as he does. “You’ve modified it,” he almost whispers as he’s circling. “Impressive. You deduced its modularity.”

  Tommy waves a hand at him. “Uh, hey, doc? That’s our friend you’re groping there.”

  “Ah, yes, of course,” he says as he steps away from her. He’s still grinning. “This technology is generations more advanced than what most people in the Tower are familiar with. How were you able to determine the means by which to unlock its modules?”

  Now Martin steps in. “Doctor. English, please.”

  “Yes. Yes, well, the armor is a modular system. No one piece of armor can be perfectly suited to all conditions. While most Security armor was a standard set meant to be suitable in a variety of conditions, this armor . . .” He steps back again and claps his hands once. “A perfect example of peak Old World Apeiron technology. A Security suit designed to adapt specifically to a range of combat conditions without losing performance capability. Simply put, it was the greatest piece of personal armor technology we ever produced.”

  “And you managed to make it that adaptable . . . how?”

  Jackie looks at him. “Like this,” she says, holding her hand out as a blue light forms through her palms. It solidifies into a thin, long sword that she holds for a second before it evaporates back into blue light. A second later, light streams along her back and forms some sort of small metallic pack. “The sword’s for cutting. The pack’s for flying.” A second later, the pack vanishes and she’s standing there in her core armor again. “It’s really not that hard.”

  Martin’s eyes are wide open by now. “Amazing. How is it even close to possible?”

  “Pocket Space. You use it to store food and supplies. The suit can open up Pocket Space with a lot more control. That’s how I can make different armor pieces appear. Or weapons. Instead of having to reach into Pocket Space, I can just materialize what I’ve got stored right into our reality.”

  Watson steps forward again, waving his finger as he does. “Yes. Yes, of course. It’s quite simply a logical extension of Pocket Space technology. One question remains though, young lady. How were you able to deduce its functions?”

  Jackie smiles as she looks at him. It’s nice to see her looking at ease. “Well, I guess we’ve never met, so you wouldn’t know that they used to think I was pretty smart back in the Tower.”

  “It would have still required accessing certain databases, files . . Apeiron technology that is far more advanced than what is typically found in the Deadlands.”

  “So, I kept studying. All I had was time. I found . . .” She hesitates. “A place, where I could learn more about the armor on my own.”

  The doc shakes his head. His smile’s gone, like he’s concerned about something. “I made an error. I assumed you were a skilled fighter, which, of course, remains true. However, your mind . . . You must be possessed of an extraordinary intelligence.”

  “I . . . I guess so.”

  I see Dodger step up. “Right now’s not the time to be humble, Jackie. Doc, Jackie was picked to go into the Tower because she was so smart. I mean, of course we all know she’s strong, but that’s not why she was chosen in the first place. Jackie was sent down there because she’s really intelligent. Like, more than most people realize. She was always asking questions nobody else wanted to.”

  Watson looks over at Dodger, then back to Jackie. “I see. Extraordinary.” He shakes his head suddenly, like he’s coming out of a haze. “My apologies, dear girl. Please, please, let’s all get out of this waiting room and into my laboratory. I’m eager to see how the suit is functioning, among other things.

  I don’t show up to the doc’s lab much, but as far as I understand, we’ve put a lot of our resources into his experiments. I realize just how much we’ve invested when we’re in the next room. There’s a row of computers sitting along the back wall, a machine that looks like it’s loaded down with weights, and more guns racked on the wall than most people will see in their lives. And there are doors leading to even more parts of his lab. The room’s fairly long, and Watson motions down to the end of it. “If you wouldn’t mind standing against the far wall. I’d like to test the performance of the suit’s ballistic resistance.”

  “Whatever you say, doc,
” Jackie says as she walks to the far end of what’s basically a gun range. While she’s on her way, Watson turns to Tommy and motions at the wall.

  “Would you like to do the honor, Tommy?”

  Tommy stares at him for a second because he obviously can’t believe what he’s being asked. “What honors?”

  “The honor of shooting at your friend?”

  “Doc, I’m not going to—”

  Jackie’s voice calls down from the opposite side of the firing range. “Don’t worry, Tommy. I’ll be fine.”

  Tommy looks at the gun racks and pulls down a pistol. “Can I at least start small?”

  Watson grins. “But of course. Science works in increments, after all.” From his pocket, he pulls out sets of ear plugs. “I had these sent over for the tests. I’d estimate you will all save your ears quite a bit of pain by putting them in.” Now, everyone in the room’s familiar with these. You use them all the time to muffle sound from a gunshot. So, everyone gets theirs plugged in pretty quick, and soon the doc’s patting Tommy on the shoulder. “You’re participating in a significant scientific event, Tommy.”

  “Yeah. Whatever you say.” Tommy doesn’t look any happier about it as he points the gun downrange. “So, do I just . . . shoot, her?”

  Jackie shouts back down to us again. “Not the face, Tommy, if you can avoid it.”

  “Got it.” He shakes his head as he straightens out his arm. “Got it.” A second later, we all hear the crack of the gunshot and see a spark dance off Jackie’s chest. She just smiles as she stares back at him.

  “I think that tickled. You can, you know, try it again. If you want.”

  Tommy heaves out as he raises the gun and fires off a few more rounds. All of them go ricocheting off her chest and bouncing into the walls. Watson chuckles as he walks to the gun rack and pulls down a rifle. “To calm any concerns, I should make it known that we do have an active magnetic field that activates when the lab’s sensors detect dangerous ricochets.”