Elysium (10 page)

“Just what I said.”

“What war do you mean?”

Silence.

Dr. Tomas looked off into space for a minute, considering.

“Tell me about Antoine.”

A twinge of pain. A raised eyebrow.

“What do you want to know?”

“You seemed to have cared for him quite a bit.”

Silence.

“His death must have been a very painful experience for you.”

Again silence.

“Tell me about him. What was he like?”

…
zero one
one zero one one zero zero zero one
one zero one one zero zero zero one
one zero one one zero
…

“Adrianne?” The doctor wrote something down.

“Adrianne, there is a new medication that I would like to give to you. I think it may help you moderate your moods.”

Adrianne concentrated on the light streaming through the barred window that sent shadows to the walls in shapes of grids and lines. The color of the curtains was a shade of cream fit for pouring into coffee. The smell of artificial lemon and pine furniture wax permeated the air and made her feel woozy.

“Thomas, I know you’re only trying to help. Do what you think is best.”

** BREAK **

>>

>>

>> createdoc defrag.fi

# defrag.fi -- defragments a life span

# by compressing it segment by segment

init time, place;

init life_span;

init segment = _get(param[0]);

life_span = getLifespan (segment);

place = getLocation (life_span);

print “** Defragging…”;

while (life_span)

{

if ( fragmented (life_span)) then

{

time = getTimeLine (life_span);

life_span = _compress (time, place);

life_span = getNextLifespan (life_span);

}

else break;

}

return print “**Lifespan Defragmentation Complete”;

.eof

>>

>>

>> execute defrag 177

** Defragging…

Adrian sat in the back of the room, eyes wide open in the dark. Dr. Tomas looked in on him through a slit in the door. They stared each other down. Predator to prey.

“How are you doing today?”

In a low whisper Adrian answered, “Why don’t you come in here and find out?”

A cold chill.

“Would you like me to come inside?”

“Yes,” Adrian said calmly, “that way I can pluck your eyes out of their sockets, doctor.”

Dr. Tomas closed the slit on the door and turned to the orderly. “Increase his medication.”

>>

>> process -b

[1] 01110001 04:31:02

[2] 10101100 10:52:49

[3] 10110001 00:00:00

[4] 10101011 53:45:13

[5] 10010101 34:38:24

.

.

>> kill [3]

>> kill [3]

>> kill [3]

>>

>>

“Adrian, this is Dr. Tomas. Can you hear me?”

A snarl vibrated from behind the locked door. Adrian sounded like a large cat with teeth made for rending flesh. He hissed, then went quiet like a menacing dark spirit in the back of the cell.

“How long has he been like this?”

“All night.”

A growl, low and intense.

“This is not working.” He wrote out a new script. “Stop the medication and give him this.”

>> kill –l [3]

*PROCESS 10110001 TERMINATED*

>> clear

.
.
.

**Lifespan Defragmentation Complete

>>

>> restart process 10110001

*PROCESS 10110001 RESTARTED*

>>

.
.
.

7.

Antoine walked across the wet cobblestone driveway toward the modern wing of the hospital. He wore a military-issue jacket and heavy boots, fresh home from his stint overseas. The sky was clear and moist after a mid-morning shower. He pulled up his collar and ducked his head. As he approached the hospital, he faced his reflection in the glass doors and saw what others saw. He was very good-looking, a condition of birth. It hadn’t made the struggles of his recent years any easier, his pain any less, or his burdens any lighter.

A flutter flutter of wings in the trees made him look up. The birds that had gathered in the branches were rustling the leaves. A sudden gust of wind forced them to take flight, filling the blue sky with a parade of flapping black sideways parentheses. In the distance, he saw the spires of the city and above them, a mist falling down. From where he stood, the sky directly overhead hung a calm and beautiful blue.

Antoine passed through the first set of glass doors into the vestibule and glanced in disgust at the names of the wealthy donors on the plaque on the wall. He snorted and moved through the inner set of doors and into the lobby. Brown plaid cushions on faux wooden chairs and a coffee table with scattered magazines furnished the room. Reprints of museum watercolors adorned the walls. Antoine approached the desk. The young woman sitting there barely acknowledged him, until the beauty of the clean-shaven statuesque man registered. Then a huge taunting smile appeared on her face. He had her full attention.

“May I help you?” she said.

“I’m looking for my brother. I was told that he was taken here.”

“Okay,” she said. “May I have his name?” She turned to her terminal while somehow still keeping her gaze on Antoine.

“His name is Adrian —”

The phone interrupted them. Then another call a second later. Then more calls. The receptionist put up a finger as she tried to answer them all, placing most on hold. Antoine struggled to remain calm. He knew why the calls were coming in. Anyone who had looked outside knew. But evidently those in their cozy little jobs in their cozy little offices remained oblivious to what had just happened only a few miles away. His heart thumped hard, and he could feel the blood reaching toward his face. He paced the floor, waiting for the receptionist to get off the phone. This was a waste of time, he thought. A rumbling like thunder rolled outside. The floor shook. Antoine grabbed hold of the receptionist’s desk to catch his balance.

Antoine’s patience had evaporated. He marched to the locked double doors marked “Staff Only” and slipped through when they opened to let a nurse out.

Doors and doors and more doors lined the corridors. He heard the receptionist call from behind, “Sir! Sir! You can’t go back there!” Antoine ignored her as well as the heads poking out of the offices that watched him pass. His only concern was Adrian. Had he known that while he was away this would happen — that his little brother would be taken to a place like this — maybe he wouldn’t have gone. Maybe.

He walked faster as the quickened clicks of heels on the linoleum tile trailed behind him.

“Sir! Sir! You can’t be back here!”

He pushed open a door. Behind it was a group of patients gathered in a circle of chairs. They calmly looked up, unperturbed by his presence, only curious. Life had worn them down — the sudden appearance of Antoine was of little concern.

“Sir! Sir!” he heard from behind.

He continued walking.

“Adrian!” he called. “It’s Antoine! Where are you?”

He looked through another door. When he turned he found that he was surrounded by orderlies and security.

“Sir, you can’t be back here,” the receptionist said as she reached out to touch Antoine’s arm. She pulled back in the last moment, her eyes wide with fear.

“I wanna see my brother.”

“Come this way and we will try and help you,” a man said and waved him towards the lobby.

Antoine looked around him. The men were big. But Antoine was bigger and meaner and more desperate. Each breath was hard and paced. There were two ways to get out of this. He could return to the reception area or he could punch his way through. He curled his fingers into a fist hidden beneath his jacket sleeve. Then the building started to shake again and the ground trembled violently. Everyone in the hall moved to brace themselves. A snaking crack snapped open on the wall near the ceiling, sprinkling dust onto the heads of those nearby. The lights went out, then came back on a moment later.

It was happening. It was coming.

“What was that?” the receptionist said, her voice an octave higher.

“While you’re figuring that out, I’m getting my brother.”

“Wait —”

Antoine pushed past the dazed staff and ran.

His calls were swallowed by the calls of others. Doctors and nurses, janitors and staff panicked as the ground continued to vibrate. They screamed out to each other, confused and scared. Patients entered the hallway only to be ushered back into their rooms.

The ground continued to move. As Antoine rushed about, the voices of the orderlies and receptionist echoed far behind him. The lights flickered off, and there was a heartbeat spent in pitch black, stillness. Dim emergency lights flooded the halls with an orange glow, and the bedlam resumed.

“Adrian!” Antoine called. “Adrian!”

He peered into a room to find a group of patients with terrified expressions stirring nervously as a lone staff person attempted to calm them. Antoine returned to the hall and grabbed by the arm someone who was running.

“I’m looking for a man.”

“Aren’t we all.” Hector shook off his grip. “Now get off!” Hector turned back into his room and tried to close the door. Antoine grabbed at his arm again.

“I’m looking for Adrian”

“Adrian?” Hector looked strangely at him through the crack of the door. “What you want him for?”

“He’s my brother and I’m getting him outta here.”

Hector said, “Well, you can’t be his brother. His brother’s dead.”

“Who told you that?”

“Shh! Keep your voice down.” Hector pulled him inside the room just in time to hide from the approaching security guard.

“Who told you that?” Antoine repeated in a quieter voice.

“Adrian did.”

“
Where
is he?!” Antoine grabbed Hector’s arms.

“Ow! Honey, that hurts!”

“It’ll hurt even more if you don’t tell me where my brother is.”

“How do I know you’re really his brother?”

“I don’t have time to fuck around!”

“Do I look like I’m fuckin’ around to you?” Hector said, shaking himself loose. “It don’t take no genius to see something bad is going down. Now prove to me you’re his brother.”

Antoine thought for a minute then said, “He has a mark on his forehead from when he was in an accident with some scaffolding.”

Hector pursed his lips. “Anyone who’s seen him can say that.”

“He likes owls,” Antoine said exasperated. “Come on, Nut!” Antoine shoved Hector.

“Alright, alright, I can show you!” Hector said. “But you gotta promise that when you’re leaving you take me, too.”

Antoine took a moment to consider the vision of Hector in his tight blue jeans, lady’s slippers, long hair, and moustache. He decided that he’d let him show him where Adrian was, then dump him afterwards.

“Fine. Whatever, Nut. Show me.”

Hector smiled and disappeared into his closet for a moment and returned with a small purse.

“Come on, honey. Time’s a wastin’. And my name is Hector, not Nut.”

Hector stuck his head out the door and looked both ways, then waved for Antoine to follow. Alarms were honking, and an automated voice blared instructions to remain calm. They slipped along the halls together, unnoticed by the rushing staff who had their hands full dealing with running patients. Antoine followed Hector to a locked door. Hector took a card out of his purse and swiped it through the security lock.