Aftereffect, p.20
Aftereffect, page 20
It didn’t matter.
I didn’t care.
“You sure this is going to hold?” I held up the rope in front of Robbie’s screen and waved it back and forth for emphasis. “It seems a little flimsy.”
He sighed. “Unless you’ve gained about four hundred pounds, it should be fine. It’s not going to be comfortable, though.”
I nodded. “It’s fine. This is just for the worst-case scenario anyway. I’ll find a way inside.”
“Be prepared if you don’t. You’ll be exposed to the elements.”
I took a deep breath and looked out the window. “A little cold never hurt anyone.”
One of my biggest faults is that sometimes I believe I am invincible.
Sacrifice is the mark of a true citizen.
When the bang erupts from this compartment, the entire vault at the back of the car lights up faster than anything I have ever seen before. I don’t know why, but instead of running away from it, I run towards it. The hologram turns and watches as I pull open the massive door and see approximately twenty empty seats with safety harnesses clicked into place and a whole bunch of circuitry lining the walls. In front of each seat is a screen with a document and a lot of writing.
It smells like burnt toast.
I turn to the hologram. “Where are the passengers?”
“They have all given their consent to become citizens.”
A piercing whistle travels from the engine, along with the squeal of the train’s brakes being engaged. The compartment jerks to a stop and I find myself falling into one of the screens. The heading of the document catches my attention: Terms and Conditions.
I scroll down and read everything carefully.
“Ma’am, I am still in need of your ticket.” The hologram speaks, and for the first time since stepping foot inside, I want desperately to leave.
I stumble back out of the vault as I realize where I am standing. “Where are they? Where did they go?”
The hologram continues to look on as if nothing is amiss. “The other passengers have given their consent and have been granted citizenship. Their upload to MagHaven begins when we are fully docked.”
The train comes to a complete stop.
“But their bodies—”
“RigMire is a digital city. There is no need for a physical body.”
I shake my head. “But you can’t do that.”
The hologram doesn’t move. “This is why citizenship requires consent.”
I run through him and force open the door I had climbed through earlier. The air is brisk and cold. I jump down and onto a metal platform unlike the one back in RigMire. I walk forward, and quickly realize that there is nothing to go towards.
There are dozens of trains around docked into a straight platform. The circuitry on the rails is unlike anything I have ever seen before. This isn’t a paradise. There isn’t anything here. I run towards the center of the platform, and see several towers lining a giant spire.
Everything looks like it’s automated in the trains.
I take a step back as the train lights up and a beam of electricity surges towards the nearest tower. A shrill of voices carry through the air. It sounds like a hundred conversations are happening all at once.
That is when I understand.
The city of RigMire—the city of knowledge and innovation—is nothing more than a giant hard drive.
I think of my father.
“Ma’am, you cannot be here without having a ticket and giving consent.”
I turn to see not one hologram, but many.
All men, all dressed in red, with whistles around their necks.
“I don’t have a ticket, and I have no intention of giving consent.”
Their hues shift from blue to orange. “Then you are an alien trespassing on foreign soil.”
There is a bang, louder than all the others, and I feel instant and intense heat. My skin peels back layers of scorched tissue. I watch as the flesh melts away and the bone is seen only for a moment before it too starts to crumble. There is a gargling scream and then one by one each of the holograms disappear. I feel myself falling, but there is no impact.
There is simply nothing.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
T. John is a speculative fiction author who draws, writes and creates under several different pen names depending on how she is feeling at any given time. Her work is themed, personal, and often begins with an attempt to make the mundane interesting. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Creative Writing and spends most of her time thriving in the lower mainland.
Jon Siniecki was born in Richmond BC, but moved around a lot growing up. Living in both large cities and small communities Jon has experienced many ways in which people live their day to day lives. As a result Jon has found a passion for writing characters that have to respond and adapt to a number of situations they encounter while trying to remain true to themselves. Jon also has a love of animals that comes from growing up in a home with seven dogs, four cats, various birds, rodents, and even a few horses. Jon studied creative writing at Douglas College and Kwantlen Polytechnic University.
Thank you for reading.
Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Rights & Disclaimers
Dedication
1 • Where We Are
2 • The Oshi
3 • Criminal Base
4 • The Amanda Protocol
5 • Unknown
6 • The Chiba-Kun
7 • What The...
8 • The Will to Survive
9 • Getting to Know the Neighbors
10 • The Pact
11 • Borrowed Time
12 • The Second Contact
13 • New Role
14 • The Man With the Coffee Mug
15 • A Non-Human Project
16 • The Neutron Purge
17 • White Sands
18 • The Light Before the Dark
19 • Drop Location
20 • The Hiking Trail
21 • Trust
22 • The Way We Cope
23 • LEX
24 • The Roadway home
25 • Project Sanctuary
26 • The Family Reunion
27 • Testing
28 • The Art of Diplomacy
29 • Limbo
30 • The Definition of Family
31 • What We Don't Know
32 • The Zpectrite Commander
33 • No Time Remaining
34 • The Void of Space
35 • Lesser of Evils
36 • Commander of Death
37 • World Powers
38 • The History of Friendship
39 • Decisions
40 • The End of a Beginning
Epilogue
Arcadian Towers
More from Mecha Panda Publishing
About the Author
T. John, Aftereffect
