FLOOR 21: Judgement (The Tower Legacy Book 3) Read online

“Precisely. There is a far more advanced version now embedded in my brain.”

  “That’s how you’re able to control the Creep right now . . .”

  “Still, there was a cost. All bonds with the Creep require you to give up a piece of your consciousness with it. Did you know that when the Creep consumes us, a little bit of our awareness remains inside of it? I never came to understand the phenomenon in its entirety, but all around you are the minds of countless thousands who have died in this Tower, living in some perpetual purgatory. Now, it is my time to join them.”

  “David . . .”

  “There will be one difference, of course. Much like Creepy Sally, in my death, my will shall live on in the Creep. Let my body die. My mind will continue to drive the Creep toward one, singular goal.”

  Jackie stands up, and she sucks in a breath. “What are you saying?”

  “The Creep will hunt you forever, Jackie Coleman, once my mind has joined with it. My last, great invention. My final revenge.”

  “David!”

  “As long as you live, I will hunt you and everyone you love. The final thought that will drive the Creep is my desire to kill you. If you live, everyone you know will die. You will be responsible for the death of those for whom you care most.” He just starts laughing before he leans back. Then he just hangs there for a second, and you can hear his voice pouring out of the speaker as he leans away, stretching his arms out as he falls into the gap behind him. It’s so quick that I don’t have time to blink, but he pitches beneath the floor and falls out of sight. Jackie’s screaming and running to grab him, but she’s way too late, and she just collapses by the gap as David Marshall vanishes into the darkness.

  “No!” she screams, her fist pounding the floor. Dodger looks at me. I know she wants to say something, she just doesn’t know how to deal with this situation. So, I lean into the mic.

  “Jackie. It’s okay. We’ll figure something out.”

  “Mike.” She scrambles over to him and lifts him up. “He’s bleeding out. I’ve got to get him—” She doesn’t have time to finish. She gets cut off by this booming, like thunder’s shaking through the floor. The ceiling’s rattling, and lights go sparking as pieces of the roof explode into clouds of dust. Then, Jackie’s grabbing at Mike and hauling him into her arms. I don’t know how she does it, he’s so much bigger than she is and in full gear, but I hear her straining as she lifts up and starts carrying him down the hall. The only reason I look away is because something flickers in my vision. My eyes go to one of the cameras, where I see a wave of Creep so thick that I know there’s no way she can avoid it.

  “Jackie, I need you to get out of there.”

  “No. I’m getting Mike out of this.”

  “You don’t have time. You’re going to have to sprint just to get off that floor. I’m watching a wall of Creep that’s coming straight down those halls for you. Jackie, there’s just no way you can get him out before it hits.”

  “I don’t need to get Mike out of the hall. I just need to get him into a room.” I watch her eyes settling on a single door that’s just down the hall. “You’re going to have to come get him, Tommy.”

  “What are you talking about? If you’re planning anything, Jackie, then just get in there with him and wait for us to come get you.”

  “No. There’s no way. You heard what David Marshall said. It’s coming for me. That’s all it wants, because that’s all he wanted. Me. Whatever’s left of Marshall in the Creep, it wants me. If I can at least get Mike into a room, I can get the Creep to come after me. I’ll distract it, and then it’s up to you. You’re the leader now, Tommy. It’s your job to save him. Then get everyone out of here.”

  “Jackie. Please!”

  “You asked me something before.”

  “What? What are you talking about?”

  I’m watching the roof falling down around her while whips of tentacles burst out of the walls, but she just keeps marching forward with Mike’s body clutched in her arms. I don’t know how she’s still walking. “You wanted to know how I keep doing it, Tommy. Why I keep putting myself on the line for you. Why keeping everyone together is so important to me.”

  “Jackie, I don’t care about that right now. Just get back here!”

  “Something Commander Abbott said to me once, just between me and him, always stuck with me. He told me he once saw his own commander killed in front of him. His commander died trying to save him.” The hallway shakes, and I watch her knee hit the floor for a second. It almost looks like she’s going to lose Mike, but somehow she keeps her grip on him, gets back up, and just keeps walking. “Abbott was the same way. I’ll never forgot how far he was willing to go for us.”

  “Yeah, but the commander wouldn’t want you throwing your life away. He wanted you to get to ground.”

  She ignores me as she keeps walking. The floor’s giving out around her as more Creep explodes up into the roof. Concrete dust is flying everywhere, and Jackie’s face is painted grey and red. On monitor after monitor, I’m watching Creep jetting through the halls and flying in her direction. “I remember being back on the basketball team when my dad coached it. I was always the best, Tommy. The best shooter. Other people were stronger, but I could drive to the basket or hit a jumper like nobody’s business. I was always the best on my team.”

  “But what does that have to do with right now? Jackie, that hallway’s going to tear open any minute now. You need to put Mike down and—”

  Her legs buckle again as the floor around her shakes. It looks like the ground’s about to break completely open, and for a second, I think she’s going to get swallowed up, but somehow she keeps marching. “Dad told me once that you can’t win by playing for yourself. He told me, Jackie, when I call a play for you, I’m not calling it so you can make a play for yourself. I’m asking you to make a play for your team.”

  “Jackie . . .”

  “That’s what I’m doing. When it comes down to it, when everything’s on the line, you do what’s right for everyone. And you guys . . . You’re not just my team. You’re my family. I’ve never . . . I’ve never had that before, Tommy. I’ve never wanted to protect people like I want to protect you. I get it. You have to do like Vick did, when he was trying to save his people. You do like Abbott did when he almost got blown up trying to save us, or like my dad when he risked his life to save me. You put yourself on the line for someone else. You do what’s right. That’s all that matters.” I see her reach the far doorway. She tosses Mike inside before slamming the door shut. Then . . . then she turns around and faces down a tidal wave of Creep that’s rushing through the hall. “Goodbye, Tommy.”

  “Jackie!”

  I see her turn around and suck in a deep breath. Everything behind her is falling apart, and she just stands there for a minute, barely standing while the floor cracks around her. Then, all I can do is watch as she runs. With the hallway exploding into pieces behind her, and tendrils breaking through the floor and swiping at her, she just keeps moving faster than I’ve ever seen. There’s one second when she reaches the edge of the gap in the floor and jumps, and it’s almost like time stops as she glides into the air. For a second, I keep hoping that something’s going to happen, that somehow she planned for this . . . but then she disappears into the darkness. The Creep rushes down after her, pouring into the hole in a flood like I’ve never seen, with the whole hall quaking like it wants to collapse. And then she’s gone.

  She’s gone.

  “It truly is fascinating, in retrospect. To think of all the great minds of the Tower. They are so possessed by the idea that the Creep is the ultimate foe. Unfeeling, deadly, everywhere . . . True, it is a vicious thing, but it is fueled entirely by instinct.

  What they all have forgotten, even their greatest scientific minds, is that all living things are designed by nature to defend themselves. All creatures instinctually lash out when their lives are threatened, most especially humanity. It is the survival function of evolution. But what se
parates humanity, what makes it far more frightening than the Creep, is that it chooses to be vicious. When backed into a corner, there is no greater killer than man.”

  - An Unknown Recording

  INDICTMENT

  Anna’s Diary

  6th of May

  Dear Diary,

  Since we’ve moved into the new apartment, I can’t say I’ve been disappointed. When daddy was first assigned to the Tower, I didn’t think much of it. To be honest, when I first heard we were to move, I was actually quite frightened by the idea. Imagine living your entire life in one place, only to be told to leave? I suppose it was just as well. The old neighborhood was in a sorry state by the time we left, though I’m told that, at one time, it was quite beautiful. Still, it’s not as if we weren’t aware of what was going on, what will all the trees and flowers dying off. You see it on the telly all the time, all the storms brewing and the farmlands starting to wither. It rains where no one needs rain, while other places are left to drought. Although we’ve done decently here in the city, I’m aware that, further down the coast, there are places that have begun to sink beneath the waves. My parents are scared it will happen here soon. That was the most reasonable excuse for moving into the Tower. We’re not sure if there will be ground enough to stand on soon, after all.

  Daddy’s worked for Apeiron for as long as I can remember. Since before I was born, actually, when he still lived overseas. He trusts the company well enough, and I suppose I do too. It’s not as if I have a choice. Everything we own was made by them. I suppose I’m a bit envious though. What we own is outdated in comparison to what our wealthier neighbors use. We’re stuck using the old fashioned telly, while others can afford those fancy floating screens. We still use discs to watch movies, when a bit more money would let us watch anything we wanted, whenever we wanted. It doesn’t help that the mall is always pushing us to buy new Apeiron gadgets. That would be well and good, if we could afford it. Still, like mummy says, we should just be happy that we’re here. Things outside aren’t looking so bright, and I’d hate to be in the city if the floods ever do hit.

  Frankly, it does feel safer here. With all the violence that’s broken out around the country, especially in the larger cities, it’s been hard to concentrate on my studies. At least here, inside the building, they have schools I can attend and the gyms where I can exercise. I don’t have to worry about looters, or worse, the terrorists from Carthage. When Apeiron built this place, they always talked about it like a second Ark, a place where we could all go and be safe from everything going on in the world. At the same time, I feel the peace we have here may be what sparked the riots in the first place. Here we are, safe in the Tower. Who wouldn’t want to be a part of that?

  We’re lucky, in a way. If it weren’t for the fact that daddy was such a brilliant engineer for Apeiron, we wouldn’t be here ourselves. It’s people like him that keep the engine running day and night. Otherwise, how would we keep everything powered? I know they say we have the solar panels in case anything should happen, but the engine’s the heart of everything we do here. How else would you be able to keep a building this size, with its gardens and gyms and mall, running? And all because the engine can draw from Pocket Space to keep everything powered. That engine keeps the building self-sustainable.

  No, if anywhere is safe in the country right now, it’s in the Tower. It’s not as if it’s the only skyscraper in the city, but it’s one of the few like this. Few places were built to survive the way this one was, and it has such a pretty name too. Tower Pisa. I’ve never personally been, but I know there’s a Leaning Tower of Pisa in what used to be Italy. Apeiron says they’ve named their buildings after some of the famous towers from history. I don’t know the names of the others, but I do like the name of ours. Go Tower Pisa!

  At any rate, daddy should be back from work soon. He told me he had to go out with Johnny, but I know they’re trying to plan my birthday. Daddy wants to keep it a secret from me because I’m going to be turning 18, and that’s supposed to be a big to-do, but my brother can barely keep from talking about it. Johnny’s always been that way. Still, I appreciate everything they’re going through for me. I’ll write again tomorrow to let you know if they were able to keep it a secret.

  Jackie’s New Recording: One

  “Happy birthday, Jackie.”

  Whoever it is that’s talking to me, their voice wakes me up from . . . whatever it is I’m in. It feels like a coma, and when my eyes open, I’m staring into a red light that’s shining at me from the other end of the room. The second I see that light, I don’t need to ask who it is. I remember. “The voice in the darkness. The shadow eyed man.” Personally, I’ve just started calling him the Stranger.

  “You remember me.”

  I start trying to pull myself up, but I’m stuck. My arms are practically glued down by Creep, and I’m buried to my waist in gunk. “Why am I alive?”

  “A little bit of you, a little bit of me, but that’s how a partnership’s supposed to be. Am I correct?” I can see his silhouette cutting itself into the light, and then I’m staring into that face that looks almost human, but . . . just, something’s off. “If you didn’t have an incredible will to survive, you’d be dead right now. All I did was wake you up.”

  “Why?”

  “Because we have a mutual interest. You saw one, again. The Angels. As old as the Tower, and how can that be? My knowledge is great, but there are visions of the past I don’t recall. Sadly, I can’t influence much in this world, but I can give you the chance to find out the truth for both of us. Pulling you out of a coma–no easy feat. A direct stimulation to the brain is all I could do for you. Your desire to live handled the rest.”

  “Can’t do much? Liar. I’ve been there when you’ve stopped time, like right before we fought David Marshall to rescue Mike.” He knows what I’m talking about. Right before we got into a firefight with one of Marshall’s monsters, the whole world came to a stop. Why? Just so this guy, the Stranger, could have a second to chat with me.

  “So much credit for so little I did. For you, a halt to the passing of time. For me, both a few moments of discussion and an eternity. Time is a circle, not a line. The brain perceives things as it will.”

  “You’re basically telling me this conversation is all in my head?”

  “Isn’t everything that happens in the Tower just a hallucination? Shadow men. Paranoia. Me.” He smiles, and his teeth look like blades cutting on each other. “The voice that haunts you from the darkness. Sally.”

  “That . . .” I don’t talk about that to anyone. “Sally’s not just in my head.”

  “And yet you are the only person who sees her.”

  “It’s not . . . I don’t know what it is, but it’s not just me losing it. There’s something else going on here. I just can’t get it through my skull.”

  “Then find out, Jackie. That’s why I’ve given you this one chance. For you. For me. A chance for us to unravel the mysteries of this world. But be warned: You won’t get another. As I said, this was merely a gift for your birthday.”

  “How did you know?”

  “There’s no time to explain how I know ally hat I know,” he says as he starts to fade into the light. “I will give you one recommendation though, before I depart. Take your present circumstances very seriously, Jackie Coleman. Gravely so.”

  “What? Why?”

  He smiles. “Because.”

  “Because what?”

  “Judge is coming.”

  When he says it, the light swallows him up and disappears. The minute it does, I feel the Creep around me wither away, and I yank myself off the ground. I’m covered in the stuff, but I guess that shouldn’t be a surprise. I literally jumped into it. At that moment though, I’m just a bit more concerned with finding out where I am. The power’s on, so there’s a little light coming in from under the door, which is the only reason I can see at first. I switch on my flashlight and flip it around, spying where I landed, an
d I realize pretty quick that there’s no use trying to look up. The hole in the roof above me stretches up for dozens of floors, to the point that the darkness eats the light I’m flashing.

  “How far did I fall?”

  I’m not even sure what to think about the room I’m in. Yeah, there’s about a garbage ton of Creep everywhere, but nothing else. I’m guessing they just used the place for storage or something. I’ll tell you this: everything is in fascinatingly good condition. In lots of places in the Tower, especially the further down we’ve come, the walls are literally rotting. The far end of this room’s completely clean though. It would be perfect, if I hadn’t come down a waterfall of Creep and busted through the roof. Who knows how far I am from my team. My friends. Just thinking about it for a second almost makes me choke, like I suddenly need to tell myself to keep breathing.

  “Okay, Jackie, get it together.” This is my worst fear, being separated from everyone else in a place I don’t know. Still, when I do a check of what I’m carrying, at least I can be happy about having some essentials. I’ve got my Pocket Space generator, which means I’ve got a little food on me. My rifle’s missing, but I’ve got a pistol, so that’s something. Plus, if I see any Creepers, I’ve still got my bat, which has proven shockingly effective whenever they’ve gotten too close. Oh, and I can’t forget to mention you, recorder. The friend that keeps on giving.

  Anyway, when I head out of the door, I’m not sure if I should be surprised by the almost disturbing lack of Creep outside, or relieved. First of all, the power’s on. I mean, yeah, I get that there’s plenty of floors that are still powered, but this place is as bright as any apartment you’d find back home, and I cannot emphasize enough how clean everything is. Almost every floor below Floor 21 has had some major Creep infestation going on. This room looks like nothing’s happened here in, like, forever. It’s not a big apartment, but it’s big enough. There’s a combined living room and kitchen at the end, plus there’s a couch against the wall and a TV in the corner. I mean, this might as well be a room on Floor 5 or something. That’s how nice it is. It looks like someone’s been taking immaculately good care of it, and that gets the little hairs on the back of my neck tingling because there shouldn’t be anyone down here.