The Minds' Game

By Daniel Mehltretter

Mature Content Warning*
*Blood and gore, Intense violence, Brief strong language, Nudity, Suggestive themes.

Resting alone on his bed attached to the ceiling of a small house on the outside of the hollow planet Genra, dark and disturbed anti-hero Jethro contemplates what to do with his hostage.

Something keeps him away.

Prepare to embark on a psychological journey into the heart of an inverted world in Daniel Mehltretter's first sci-fi novel: The Minds' Game.

Prepare to Invert your Mind.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

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• Language: English
• Publisher: Daniel Mehltretter
• Release date: Jun 17, 2011
• ISBN: 9781458059338

Daniel Mehltretter

Daniel Mehltretter graduated with a Bachelor's degree from Savannah College of Art and Design in Interactive Design and Game Development in 2010. Then in 2011-2012 Daniel attended the School of Revival in Raleigh, NC. During the fourth quarter of his junior year in college, Daniel wrote The Minds' Game, First Edition, following a breakup and prophecy. All 301 short chapters were written in 12 weeks and one day. In 2011 Daniel re-released The Minds' Game with rewritten chapters and for free. The Reimagined Edition of book 1 is now canon to the series and the only version available. The Minds' Game: Reset was written over the course of 3 years, and was published in 2012. He is writing book 3 at this time.

Book preview

Out-of-Bounds

"Agape Mind"

The Minds' Game was an outlet for me to convey everything that I felt over the past few years of my life into a story that lived and breathed like the most memorable action role-playing-game that you could ever play. But it didn't stop there. This was an opportunity not only for me to share my feelings of happiness, anger, fear, lust, remorse, love and loss, but also a chance to give the world a new way to imagine life. Are our lives a part of a game?

They say nothing is new under the sun, so I thought, why not make a new sun? And why stop there? Why not create a whole new world? People. Places. Objects. Have we seen them all? Has every place that we could ever imagine been imagined? Perhaps. Many believe this to be true. Have our feelings all been felt before? Probably. But I would like to challenge this theory with you the reader. Would you like to play a game with me?

If you read this book and have heard, seen or imagined pretty much everything before then you win! But. If there's something new, and I'm not talking about anything, I'm talking about something that's substantial enough to enhance your creativity, perspective or persona in a new light – a way or thing that you have never imagined before – then I win.

As will you.

I hope you thoroughly enjoy this book. It was a lot of fun to write.

Special Thanks:

Thank you friends and family for all of your help and support. It was so much fun to have readings with you guys and to see your excitement, shock and amazement. There are sure to be many more readings in the future and it's only going to get bigger from here. I wish there were space to name you all. Every single one of you has impacted me in some way. Thus, there's a part of all of you in this book somewhere. You just have to look.

Preface - Gina

"Getting Ready"

Never had two days turned my life into an upside-down carnival act of whacked-out crazy like they had these past two. Not even my brother could have predicted such a bizarre change in one's behavior right before the moment of truth. Or in my case, would-be murder. But he wasn't the only one on my mind.

Who was that other crazed lunatic? He's got to be in on it too. Jackal – I think he called him. If it weren't for the purple chains hanging from his neck and boots, or the double-mohawk crossing the top of his head like an open zipper, I would've never believed he made it into a full-fledged gang at all. But if he trusts him, I guess I have no choice but to accept his help.

I could still feel the device lodged in my throat. Why would anyone make me do this in the name of the First Mind? A Mind I do not follow. For I've never been asked by It.

Gina.

I spun around to meet the first of my captors. A green trench coat and matching green hat, with a solid white stripe running up its top, clothed the tall and broad man who had come to get me. He reached out his arm to take my hand with a smile. Calmly he said, You will see me in three days.

Before I could reply the drug took effect. I fell into his discomforting grasp. Time for three more days of crazy with yet another murdering lunatic. Believe it or not, this is the first time anything like this has happened to me. Sure, I've played dozens of games with equally psychotic plots and even less-heroic heroes, but this wasn't one of them. If life were a game, like Theo's Forbidden Texts would have me believe, then perhaps all of this really was happening for a reason. Maybe everyone I had ever met, whether cruel or kind, was actually a preordained pawn of differing significance based not solely on one's life, but upon those whose minds hadn't yet been made up. For if The Game were true, everything I knew would be different. . .

But I won't ask you to believe me. You can find out for yourself.

Warning:

You are about to enter The Minds’ Game.

Be prepared to think about and question everything that you take for granted.

…Things are different here…

Welcome to Planet Genra.

Enjoy your stay.

ACT I

"Below the Truth"

"Only through guilt can sin plague the innocent," The Balance, Book I.

Chapter One

"Gene Seas"

In the beginning were two Minds. They existed in a sea of nothingness. It was a sea without a hope of controlling the Minds' creativities or imaginations. For millennia, the Minds grew and developed into opposites.

Before time. The Minds decided to play a game—a game without limits. Anything could be manifested by the Minds, however the creations would be required to live by the rules put forth by Them. Furthermore, the purpose of The Minds' Game would be unknown to all creations at birth.

The Game began.

The Minds created a single universe with planets of different sizes, colors, textures and depths. The Minds became different and Their planets reflected these inner differences.

Then the Minds invented rules for their game. The first rule was time. Time was a linear development that would be understood and maintained by all living things. It would have a beginning, a middle and an end.

Then a few of Their planets were selected for further developments. These later became known as the Testing Grounds. There were seven Testing Grounds made by each Mind. Fourteen Testing Ground planets existed in the universe, separated only by space.

On every Testing Ground the Minds made creatures. Creatures were given instinct to guide them toward one purpose: Survival.

Time passed.

The Minds discovered that giving Their creatures instinct alone led to the same outcomes as it was always based upon strength or numbers. The creatures procreated, lived and died.

The Minds decided to make something new, known as Beings. These Beings would encounter the existing instinct-driven creatures, however, the Beings would be more intellectually dominant than them. The Minds had given the Beings some of Themselves. The Beings had instinct, but they were also given an innate understanding of morals. Morals were their gift.

The handling of morals was where the Minds’ worlds differed. While every Being had the freedom to choose their own destiny; Beings were given guidelines at birth.

The First Mind gave its Beings a conscience, which urged individual’s minds toward a positive outcome. The Beings who listened to their conscience were merciful and trustworthy. They believed life was best lived with self-restraint and by doing all in their power to better the lives of others. Those who ignored their conscience were given guilt to make them feel sick or disgusted when they lied or used excessive force.

The Second Mind gave its Beings a proscience, which urged individual’s minds toward a negative outcome. The Beings who followed their proscience became liars, thieves and outright murderers. They lived without restraint which often led them into many addictions. If Beings ignored their proscience they would feel empty, like they were missing the joys of life.

There was one common ground between every Being in existence. They were all given the ability to feel love. Love came in many forms, but its core was simple: Love was to care more for another Being than for ones-self.

The Minds observed as their Beings encountered Their earlier creations. It was apparent that the Beings were able to reason. However, in all the worlds, pointless wars were being fought and inane treaties were being made.

The preparations for The Minds' Game were complete. If all Beings from a single planet of Mind One’s Testing Grounds came to absolute war, then Mind Two would win. If total peace was achieved in one of Mind Two’s Testing Grounds, then Mind One would win.

The Game was fair. The Beings of the First Mind did not wish for war any more than the Beings of the Second Mind wished for peace. Could the underlying proclivity toward proscience or conscience be ignored long enough to make a world of absolute peace or conflict?

Chapter Two

"Guard Eons"

The Minds observed the dark and light insanities developing all over the worlds from the lack of chastity. The children born to dismissive families in the worlds of the First Mind had the uncanny ability to dismiss their guilt of violence by means of excuse. Meanwhile, the unwelcome children of the chaotic Second Mind often wished to stray from their parents' troublesome paths by means of a lifestyle which involved giving endless love to the undeserved and being accepting of others' mishaps.

The generations of degeneration blinded the Minds to the future and caused them to create something else to fix the growing crisis. The Testing Grounds needed something to help guide the Beings toward their Creators' intentions. The Minds needed to keep every Being listening to their conscience and proscience before The Game came to a premature finish.

The Minds selected three people from every testing ground and called them Guardians. These Guardians were born normal Beings, however they were able to hear from the Mind who created them. The Minds gave the Guardians guidance with words, visions, signs and dreams.

The Guardians of the First Mind helped prolong the peace.

The Guardians of the Second Mind fought to uphold an everlasting chaos.

Chapter 3

"I for an Eye"

I finished reading the first two chapters of this book and stuck it back to the table. There's work to be done. . .

"The name's Jethro, and I'm a Guardian."

This isn't the first time I've read this book, and even though I can speak to the Mind, it's usually unclear what it's telling me to do. I held my nickel-plated revolver into the air to watch the candle light flicker down the barrel.

Why was I born inside of a Second Mind’s world..?

Call me lighthearted, but I don't agree with everything that's in me. I think the Mind made a mistake by giving us love. I may feel it's wrong to save someone's life, but could love ever make the pain worth the trouble that it brings?

I looked across the room at the woman, who called herself Gina, tied to the chair where I put her for questioning in the blue hour. Near-every strand of her lightly-colored hair was tucked into the collar of her dark short-sleeved shirt. I followed the light cast by her earrings across the room – to my gun.

I put the revolver under my desk and my fist below my chin to think. This is the problem... She knows of The Game. It's forbidden for a non-Guardian to know of The Game's existence. If I don't silence her, then I'll be killed and a new Guardian will take my place. I won't pretend to imagine how the selection process works. I wish, with everything that I am, that I hadn't been chosen to be a Guardian in the first place. A Guardian... One who protects the sanctity of The Game – But does It even need protecting? If she gets out with this who would listen to her? She'd be killed by the masses for stupidity. As long as I've known the secret of The Game has lived on for generations with only the Guardians knowing the truth...

Hrrrmmphhh! A loud mumble from the corner awoke me from my inner thoughts. A man with a cloak covering his face and body seemed to have come from nowhere. He stood in front of my hostage – frozen in place.

Gina mumbled again through the tape covering her mouth and glared at me. The cloaked intruder stole two knives from his belt. I grabbed my revolver as a knife left the man’s hand. Reflex was all I needed to cripple his efforts. Then I'd extract whatever I could from his deluded brain before finishing him off for the good of mankind.

Thud! BLAM!

The quick maneuver had promise, but armor beneath the assailant's cloak reneged my shot. Still, the force was enough to knock back my attacker – and my hand. But decades of practice turned the game in my favor. My arm absorbed the massive recoil feeding my unrighteous ambitions with all the fuel it needed to kill. The subtle glint of his eyes was all that was visible in the shadow of his hood; his mouth and nose hidden by a rusty mask. My only viable target.

Click!

Damn it! The glint in one eye ceased – to mock superiority while he readied the second throw. He enjoyed this as much as I. Gina leaned back in her chair and kicked. The man’s knife hit the wall and I seized the opportunity to grab the loose rounds under my table, but when I looked back…

The assailant was gone.

Not going to get away that easy, I said, running to the open door. I walked outside into the faint light of the red moon. A speckled trail of blood led away from the house. I sprinted toward the blood as it floated up into space. It ascended faster than I could follow in my pull-boots and I soon gave up the chase. I scanned with my binoculars before returning home.

Trying to do my job for me… how typical.

Chapter 4

"In No Sense"

Inside my house, I followed my gut feeling to completely ignore the woman who'd just saved my life. She mumbled again through the tape, but I kept my eyes on my desk and took a seat without concern. I pulled back the tape and held up my book to continue reading…

The Second Rule created by the Minds was the Rule of Gravity.

In the First Mind’s worlds pulled everything toward them.

In the Second Mind’s worlds pushed everything away from them.

I put the book down to imagine what it would be like to be on a ground that pulled you toward it. I suppose it would be like the other side of this ground. The side that faces the sun in the center of our planet. Although, technically it is the large sun repelling you that gives you the feeling that the ground is pulling you toward it. I lived on the inside of our planet when I was younger, but I prefer it here on the isolated outskirts facing space and the distant stars. Moons of various colors come and go in a patterned fashion letting me know the cycle of the day. Also it never gets as bright as the other side, and to me, that's a good thing.

Gina tried to speak again. I got up from my chair and walked over to her. She looked at my face and I was stunned. It felt as though her kind eyes were able to see into my soul. I quickly ripped the tape off of her mouth and sat back at my bolted-to-the-ground desk. As I took my seat she asked, What do you want from me?

I tossed the tape into the trash on the ceiling, beside my bed, and gave her a short glance before picking up my book to continue reading. She better be happy that she can breathe easily. Now she'd better shut it...

Are you going to kill me? Gina asked in a near-whisper.

Guardians are naturally great liars, but for whatever reason I paused. If it weren't for me keeping my eyes on the book, she would have easily read my lie. No. I'll let you go... after you tell me where your friends are.

I will never tell you, she replied looking down between her tightly-closed knees.

I grunted and started thinking of which torture device in my closet would be the most beneficial for the situation.

After Gina's short pause, she looked up and said, I will show you where I live.

She won't tell me, but she'll show me? This little game of hers must be some kind of escape plan, I thought. I must kill her. Although, if I allow her to show me where she lived, then it'll keep her alive a little longer. Some strange part of me wanted her to stay alive. Perhaps it was evil love or perhaps it was just acceptable lust.

...But I don't know where we are… said Gina reluctantly.

I put the book down and looked in the corner at the purple bag I had had covering her head when I carried her unconscious body here earlier.

Don't worry, I replied slyly. You'll know where we are soon enough.

Chapter 5

"The Running River"

The golden hour came and we left the house. I was fully strapped. The holster on my right leg held my revolver. On the inside of my boot I kept my knife in its sheath. My vest held my grenades, ammunition and binoculars. The pouch on my back held more fuel for Gina's and my pull-boots. Two canisters lasted for a day and I brought eight. Split between us, we'd be set for two days.

A twenty-foot chain kept the two of us together. I attached it to Gina’s right wrist and my left.

I led her down the path away from my shack to the place I knew she'd recognize. The voice in the back of my head screamed for its usual attention. Her being given to me was no accident, and my allowing her to live was probably a huge mistake. Still, even at my age, where comfort was guided by routine, curiosity was beginning to grab a hold on my proscience.

Then the woman began to complain, I won't be able to tell you where we're going, until we--

I know you don't know your way from here! That's why I'm the one in front! I turned and yelled. Having female company for more than a few well-spent minutes was even more frustrating when it was spent wasting breath. It's amazing how small-talk speaks so loudly to those without an inner-voice. I tugged on the chain and said, C'mon, let's go. Gina stumbled forward and off we went.

We walked along the path that met up with The Bleeding River. The river was alive and ran by the DNA of the dead who commonly filled it. As it swished and meandered alongside the path I noticed a slight tug on the chain. Gina had stopped moving. I was about to say something when I saw why she had stopped.

On the other side of the river were two men running at full speed in our direction. The ground began to tremble and Gina gasped. Over the hill, behind them, came a Grudger. Grudgers – ogre-like creatures with faster legs, bigger mouths, and sharper teeth. This one looked like it had seen a recent meal as it had blood eagerly escaping up through the gaps in its teeth. Apparently, its appetite had yet to be satiated.

I turned around and continued down the path. Come on Gina, no need to get involved.

No one has ever survived crossing the river. Nevaeh. That Grudger is doing my dirty work for me.

What?! Aren't you going to help them! she yelled.

No. I responded intuitively and kept walking.

Well, if you're not going to do something then I will! Gina shouted with fire rising in her voice. I turned to see her walk right up to me with confidence. In her free left hand she snatched a grenade from my vest. I looked down, astounded by her quickness. By the time I reached for her, she had already thrown my grenade in a downwards arc across the river.

She must have been left-handed, because the grenade flew the perfect distance in front of the Grudger. The beast ran forward and the grenade exploded in the air before it. The two men were a safe distance away as the Grudger went up in flames. The white fire from the grenade made the creature go berserk. As its body melted, the Grudger managed to move a few steps farther before its heart stopped. The boots that had bound the creature to our planet detected its heartbeat cease. The Grudger’s burning body began slowly floating. Suddenly, the living river lurched a wave upward and pulled the creature down into its mouth.

SPLOOOSHH!

With a deep splash, the dead monster was engulfed by the red water. After a few seconds all that remained were a few bubbles.

I looked at Gina with my eyebrow raised in marvel of her skill.

She stared back at me with a smile across her face and said nothing.

Thank you!

Thanks yo!

I glanced over and saw the two men waving to Gina. I snickered before walking down the path. I heard Gina say, You're welcome, to both of them before being tugged away by the chain.

Chapter 6

"Breathing Grounds"

As we continued our outer-world journey, I thought about how strange it was to see a Grudger on the outside of our planet. Since Grudgers require pull-boots and are not intelligent enough to acquire them on their own, most of them live on the inside, facing the sun.

The normal creatures out here are very different, such as The Bleeding River which wraps itself around the ground to prevent from moving up into space. All the creatures on the outside have a way of sticking to the ground… just as Gina has a way of falling behind.

I turned around to see why Gina had stopped again. She was on her knees and panting. We had been moving at a snail’s pace… what could have caused her to have this sudden trouble breathing?

Then it hit me. She had to be suffering from Inner Air Syndrome or IAS. When I first arrived on the outside of the world I used to get IAS frequently. It is caused by the body having trouble adjusting to the lack of air. IAS attacks are brought on by a rapid change to a person’s blood pressure. I heard some people never get over it. Having just encountered a Grudger, it was no surprise for her to be having one now.

I got onto my air-suctioned knees and shuffled through my pockets for something to help. She began choking and vomited chunks of forgotten food into space. I tried to remember what I had done when I had the same trouble. Usually, I'd just suffer through it. There was a seventy-five percent chance or so of surviving an attack without aid, and to be honest, that was greater than the chance she had to see the rest of the week in one piece. In a part of my heart I felt pity. She stopped spewing, but continued to cough uncontrollably. Tears came from the pain and I could take no more of it. I pushed her back and blew a deep breath of air into her mouth. She was able to control her coughing just long enough for me to move away before she unleashed another barrage of spewage. In complete disgust, I spat at the ground and wiped away the mess that had gotten on me. She coughed some more, but it was controlled now.

Been to the other side recently?

Yeah. She replied, looking up in gratitude. I live.. cough… on the inside.

Words could not define the sheer hatred I felt for my homeland. Nowhere on the outside of the planet could hold the corruption the inland had beguiled to my glorified morality. That's why I lived here. Had I known her origin I would never have accepted the trade in the first place. I jumped up and yelled, Why on Genra didn’t you say so sooner?!

"I said, ‘I do not know where we are’… cough… You would not let me finish." She appealed, her eyes wide and red.

I sighed to let the rage subside. Where to then?

I don't know the way from here, but we need to get to the other side, she replied.

I had done everything in my power to never see the accursed inside again. I lived far from the connectors for the very intent of avoiding access to the other side completely. Now she wanted me to go back.

Chapter 7

"Avoiding Intent"

I began to wonder what reasons I had to continue on with this opportunity for mass-murder. I needed to have a damn good reason to go to the place I hated the most. The cutthroat police did a good enough job on their own keeping the public in check – what the nevaeh would I do to help? In the large cities solo-operations are suicide.

How many people live in your village? I asked.

Not too many, She replied, We have a pretty small community.

Sounds like a reasonable place to exploit. But going all of the way to the other side for some small community was absurd. There were enough of them here. If I were to continue, the only true reason would be that I didn't feel like killing her right away. The only question was: Could I live with that?

It was the pink hour and with it, the pink moon was crossing the sky on schedule. It must have recently rained on the other side, because the ground was becoming damp. Clouds of moisture rose from the road ahead. As the mist rose into space, the pink light shone through it, casting shadows that were barely visible.

I continued down the path knowing full-well that I was in direct violation of the Mind and Its guide for my life. Deep down I felt a great deal of confusion. Was I doing the wrong thing? Could the payoff truly be worth the journey? All I knew was that if I kept walking down this road things were going to become more difficult; and my motives would be less and less lucid.

Chapter 8

"Fictational Understanding"

You didn’t have to breath into my mouth you know. Gina broke the silence as it started to rain upward in the river beside our path.

What did you want me to breath into? I replied with a dirty grin to appease my warped mind.

No, I mean... Couldn’t you have just used one of those anti-gravity canisters that we use for our boots?

I didn’t want to waste one, I replied. Hadn't thought of that... Would that have really worked? Anti-gravity canisters were used to pull, just like thrusters were used to push. I didn’t know if pulling air out of her would have worked, but it could be worth a try if it happened again.

As we walked along the path it occurred to me that there was an old connector station in the Edger Cliffs not far from us. I hadn't thought to use that station earlier because it had been overrun with edgers, from which the cliffs got their name. Edgers were creatures with hundreds of tiny legs underneath their backside to propel them forward. They had three enormous arms; two at their sides and one out of their chest that moved around like snakes with a single spike at the end of each. They were able to stick to the ground by keeping a spike in it at all times.

The Edger Cliff connector would not be the safest way to get to the other side, but it could be the fastest. But then again, who knew if it would even work?

We came to a divide in the road. I already had to choose. Gina was reading the sign, Edger Cliffs, with the words, STAY AWAY written in blood, probably by a pacifistic edger-meal, over the original text. What an insightful invitation, I thought to myself. Sure beats taking the long way around.

There’s a connector in the cliffs, I told Gina, leading the way.

Are you kidding? She replied, Someone probably died to warn us away from there!

Bet they weren't the first. And they sure as nevaeh ain't gonna be the last. But it’s the fastest way. Let's get it over with, I replied.

Gina reluctantly followed and I pulled out my revolver to check that it was fully loaded. I was content when I saw all six shots resting in place – waiting to be spent.

Chapter 9

"Hanging Up"

I kept my gun held loosely in my right hand as we walked. I glanced over my shoulder and noticed Gina was walking closer to me than usual. To our side The Bleeding River led off into a cave were there was a waterrise. A waterrise was an inverse waterfall where the water flowed up at the mouth of the cave entrance and continued through the rest of the cave on the ceiling. As we walked past I looked through the waterrise and saw a shadowy figure standing on the other side. Gina was too busy staring at the coming cliffs to notice. If the man in the cave comes after us – I'll deal with him then, I thought.

The cliff wall rose beside us as we walked down the path. Segments of land protruded from its walls like spikes overhead. Some of the spike-like terrain went from one wall to the other creating large archways. As we walked out from under one Gina exclaimed, Look at that!

I looked where she was pointing and saw the carcass of an edger stuck at the top of the cliff wall. The spikes above the creature were preventing it from floating upward. Dark green blood stained a gaping hole in the creature’s stomach, below its third arm.

Killed by one of its own, I told Gina when we stopped to take a closer look.

We'd better hurry. She said, taking the lead.

It looked like it may have been stabbed by another edger, but one could never be too certain in this place.

We passed the first of many edger holes. Edgers used small caves in the wall to sleep so that they would not have to pin themselves to the ground. I held my gun tightly as we passed, expecting an edger to burst out of a dark hole at any moment.

Can they hear us? Gina whispered.

They shouldn't, I replied quietly. I don't think they have the ability to hear. But tread lightly. They'll feel us moving through the dirt.

With their claws you mean? Gina asked. I nodded and Gina continued, I never paid much attention in learning about the outer-world creatures. Now I kinda wish I had...

Our path became more narrow. We were nearing the connector. I listened to the deep groaning of an edger's snore echoing down the walls of a cave as we past. While edgers move around at about a being's height, they are actually much longer and can stand much taller. Half of their body is like a tail full of legs that can be dragged across the ground... or ceiling.

We came to a dead-end. Time had taken its toll and the ground below had caved-in the space between this room and the next. There was no way around it.

I groaned, holstering my pistol. This wasn't here before.

When is 'before'? Gina asked.

Twenty-something years ago, I thought. Damn, I guess it has been a long time.

I remained silent as I inspected the ground around the base of the new wall.

Hmm... You struck me as the kinda guy that would come out here every evening just for fun, said Gina. Only joking. But what kinda guy are you Jethro? I think I know exactly what you would have done to the guy who came into your house if you had caught him. Or me if I hadn't--

CRAAASH!

I found a big enough hole to dig through and got impatient. My gloved fist broke through the wall and, as I pulled it out, the harmless pink moonlight shot in at us. Dirt and rubble caved out and up – leaving us a small opening into the next area. I looked at Gina and saw what the disturbance had done. Three territorial edgers were already clawing their ways through the ground toward us.

With only a second's hesitation I grabbed my revolver and put a bullet between the eyes of the edger leading the pack. I yelled at Gina and she climbed her way through the hole into the unknown. As she did, more edgers came out of the caves on my left and right. I unloaded on them with every bullet in my gun.

BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! Click!

Throwing my empty gun through the hole to the other side, I yelled, Grab that, here I come!

I dashed toward the edgers to get a running start.

Two of them stabbed at me with their third arms.

The arms stuck into the walls on either side of the pathway as I leaped head-first through the hole. I rolled to a landing on the other side and looked at Gina. Between us was my revolver floating upward. I walked forward, reached up and caught it.

I told you to grab it! I yelled.

Without paying her any further attention, I quickly turned to take in our surroundings. We were standing in an enormous circular room with the sky visible through gaps in the terrain overhead. Edger holes lined the walls and there was a pathway leading to one side. The stained ceiling was covered in dead edgers. I spotted something inside one of the holes and reloaded my revolver. I held my gun high as I walked to the rim of the small cave. In the back of the cave was the skeleton of a man wearing the remnants of a connector worker suit; however, that wasn't what sparked my interest. There was a Grock, better known as the G28, floating against the ceiling at the edge of the cave. I picked it up and retracted the magazine to see if it was loaded.

That’s a G28E.

I turned around in complete and utter shock to see a moderately built man with a gray goatee jump out of one of the upper holes. The rugged man landed beside me.

The E stands for explosive rounds, he explained. Thank you, I have been looking for my second child.

The man reached for his gun. I knocked away his hand and stepped back at the same time.

I don’t think so! Who are you? I pointed my newly found-loaded weapon at his face.

You do not have the right to use that gun on me, He said calmly.

With the gun to his forehead, he walked forward and extended his hand to shake mine.

My name is Messiah.

This man has some guts, I thought. I naturally liked him. I holstered my new Grock in my belt and shook his hand.

The name’s Jethro. Not bad to meet you, Mess.

Chapter 10

"Filtered"

I heard Gina coughing horribly again and pushed Messiah aside to see what was wrong. Oh no… Not again! I complained when the realization hit me.

What is the matter with her? Messiah asked as I ran to aid Gina.

She's having an IAS attack! I yelled.

Well we have something more important to worry about right now, Messiah said while motioning toward the hole we had come through. That little stunt you pulled attracted some unwanted attention. You should try being more careful next time.

I looked at the hole and watched as at least fifteen edger arms stabbed through the dirt. In a matter of seconds we would be surrounded by dozens of them. Messiah pulled his other G28E from his belt and said, Come now, this way.

I picked up Gina and followed Messiah as the edgers broke their way through the opening in the wall. I let go of Gina to avoid an edger claw as it struck at me.

BOOM!

Before I had time to aim, Messiah put a large hole where the creature’s head used to be.

Don't take your time, he said. There's a schedule to keep. With that he turned and walked down the passage alone.

I looked down in helplessness knowing that if I followed him, Gina would die. We were in this together, or at least we are bound together by the twenty-foot-long chain on our wrists. I awkwardly pulled the revolver from its holster. With the G28E in my right hand and the revolver in my left, I begin annihilating the edgers as they tried to surround us.

Gina was getting worse. I realized that I didn't need to use a canister from my pack as I had previously assumed. I could use one that was already in my boot...

While shooting to keep the creatures at bay, I kneed Gina in the chin to knock her head back farther. I wiped my boot on her legs and then stuck it to her face. I quickly realized that the force was not only pulling the air from her throat – it was also sucking her face in. To make matters worse – it had just gotten stuck. I kicked forward to knock her out of the pull.

Pop!

Gina fell backward onto the dirt. An edger must have made its way behind me because the next thing I felt was intense pain in my shoulder. I looked down and saw the tip of an edger arm protruding out. I moaned in agony and aimed my G28E behind me with the trigger held down.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The creature shrieked loudly until about the fourth shot when there was nothing left capable enough to emit a noise.

I unload the rest of the clip into the creatures blocking the path to Messiah. I picked up Gina and held her limp body in my arms. Her boots are still active, so her heart must still be beating, I thought. Edger bodies floated to the ceiling as I ducked and pushed my way to the exit. Edger blood flowed up my face and I looked down in surprise. Gina had her eyes open.

Thank… you. She said faintly before closing them.

Emptiness filled me, not from her words as they were somewhat soothing, but for my disobedience to my own nature. I am a Guardian. I am to take and never to give. What am I to gain by helping her? Suddenly an edger pushed us against the wall and slid ahead. It turned around, blocking our path of escape. I stepped to the side as its third arm flew down at us. Dust flew from the ground and I kicked the blinded creature in its side. With Gina still in my arms, I ran down the passage and around a bend. Messiah was standing calmly with a cigar in his mouth and a G28E in his hand. Beside him were the elevator doors, resting wide open – the connector to the other side.

Took you long enough, He said after a single shot into the edger behind me.

Not bad, Mess, I said as I carried Gina past him into the elevator. Now, let’s get the nevaeh out of here!

Messiah hit the button beside the elevator. As the doors closed he looked back and took the cigar out of his mouth. I'm not coming with you. This is my home for now. With that he turned and blasted away more of the mindless edgers. May I have my child? he asked.

It’s out of ammo, I replied, tossing his other weapon through the closing doors.

Perfect, He replied, taking the gun by the barrel. An edger propelled itself at him with a horizontal slash. Messiah ducked the arms and bashed the creature in the head with the butt of his pistol. Silly creatures.

Chapter 11

"Space Confined"

I sat down in the cramped elevator and put my back against the wall. The connector may have been used twenty or thirty years ago, but it was built hundreds of years earlier. The squeaking of metal on metal looped on endlessly as we moved. It was as if the elevator had grown too large for the shaft.

I looked at Gina lying on the floor where I had put her. Her words "Thank you" played through my mind and I wondered how she could possibly thank me. What strange part of her found it acceptable to be so kind? She had no reason to be this way toward me at all. I'm not that way to her. How can she live with herself?

The last bit of moonlight that had faintly been following us along the walls decided it would go no farther. Only one bulb worked in the elevator, but even it was starting to flicker. Soon there would be nothing left, but blackness above and below.

I remembered that on the inside we no longer needed our anti-gravity canisters to be turned on. It would be a good idea to save their energy for later anyway.

I turned off the switches on both of my boots and fell to the ceiling. There was more gravity the closer we came to the sun, and the landing was harsher than I'd expected. With the adrenaline from the last battle having warn off, I could feel the new bump rising where I'd landed on my head. Doesn’t hurt as bad as the hole in my shoulder from the dammed edger claw, I thought looking down to inspect it in the darkness. If I weren't a Guardian, I don't know if I'd be breathin' right now.

I pulled Gina’s leg toward me. I turned off her first boot and then her second. She fell from the floor into my arms and I placed her on the floor of the ceiling with me. I then replaced the canisters in our boots with fresh ones from my pack. The old ones I returned to the pouch. If we came across a recharge station I could refill them for cheap.

The IAS attack had left Gina unconscious. I laid down next to her deciding it would be a good idea to get some rest. As I did, the lonely light in the elevator flickered and went out. How convenient, I whispered in the dark. I put my head down on the cold glass floor and closed my eyes. It was as black as with them open.

Chapter 12

"Deathstiny"

I awoke suddenly. My head was throbbing and covered in sweat. I leaned up and saw Gina sitting in the corner eating a vim bar. Where'd you get that? I asked before realizing it was less important than my immediate second question, Wait a minute, where's the light coming from?

It didn't take me long to regain my bearings and realize that we were nearing the other side. The heat from the sun came up the shaft and made, what was cold glass – incredibly