Guardians of the Dark

Kasen arrived at Craedor Fortress extra early that morning. He had rolled around in bed the entire previous night, and decided the sooner he got out of the house, the less likely he’d go insane. His mother still slept when he left, having only returned from the Metropolis of Light Hospital at dawn – for the third night in a row.

“Have you visited your father yet?” asked Eliza, adjusting the adhesive around her wrists to tighten her sleeves.

Felix had instructed them – Kasen, Eliza, and Buff – to wait in the cave while he searched for Matt and arranged their transport. They were bound for the Southern Collection Point that day, on a mission to collect the gathered Dark, thus required a large enough railway pod to convey six people plus the collection tanks.

Easily put, a collection pod.

Kasen kicked at a stone. “No,” he said, “I – uh – I don’t think I’m ready yet. It’s all still too difficult to process.”

“I understand.” Eliza kept looking at him, even though he didn’t look back. He saw her grinning in the corner of his left eye. Not a full grin, but enough to warm his chest and parch his mouth. “It must’ve been awful …”

Kasen nodded, but didn’t say anything.

“I know you probably don’t want to talk about what happened yesterday in the Dark room,” Eliza went on, “but –”

“You’re right, I don’t want to talk about it.” Kasen only now looked up. His frown faded the moment he locked eyes with her. Her crystal-blue irises, rimmed with dark cobalt. “I’m just, well, going through some stuff.”

“Okay,” was all she said.

Kasen suddenly felt bad. Guilty. Eliza had been nothing but nice to him since the moment they met, and he the exact opposite. The thing is, he didn’t know what to make of her. She was smart, ambitious, and caring … and yet, selected as a Guardian. If someone as perfect as her ended up here, the system surely made no mistake with him.

“Eliza,” said Kasen after a moment.

“Yea?”

“I’m sorry.”

“Oh? What for?” she asked, clearly oblivious.

“You must think me a horrible, messed-up person. And I am, I guess … which is why I’m sorry you have to see it.” Kasen raised his hand to shake hers. She briefly looked at it, then took it. Her grip was strong, less like a girl’s and more like a soldier’s. “So, there … I’m sorry. I’ll try to be a better friend from now on.”

Eliza held his hand a little longer. She blew her hair out of her eyes and said, “Alright, apology accepted. And yes, you are messed-up and horrible.” He frowned, making her laugh. “But I know that’s not really you.”

Kasen wanted to ask Eliza who she really thought he was, but Malcolm stumbled out of a railway pod and whistled at them.

“Holding hands now, are we?” he mocked, running a hand through his head of curls. When he lowered his arm, he took a moment to adjust his shoulder and feel around it. “You work fast, Traynor. I praise you for that.”

Kasen and Eliza at once peeled apart. Eliza made herself busy by tying her laces, while Kasen took a closer look at Malcolm. He asked, “What’s wrong with your shoulder there? Partied a little too hard last night?”

Malcolm scoffed. “For your information, I did party hard. And no, my shoulder’s just tight from yesterday’s training. All that hacking and fist pumping … life in the public eye is hard, my foe, too much pressure.”

Kasen rolled his eyes.

Foe?

“Public eye?” Eliza spoke over his thoughts.

“Yea, didn’t you see all my fans?” Malcolm pulled at his jacket. “I’m making it all the way to level 10 next time.”

“Not if I make it there first,” Eliza challenged him, leaning around Kasen toward Malcolm while grinding on her teeth.

Malcolm took an alarmed step back, but his scowl didn’t fade. “I don’t think it quite works that way, doll.” He looked at Kasen in between them. “Tell your girlfriend to calm down, Traynor. I don’t want to have to hurt her.”

“Sh – She’s not my girlfriend,” Kasen clarified, but he nonetheless grabbed Eliza’s shoulder and pulled her back. She relaxed for a moment, only to tense up again when Felix strode through the door into the cave.

“Alright, beauties,” he sang, “the collection pod’s just around the corner.”

Eliza glanced behind Felix. “But,” she said, “where’s Matt?”

“Wish I knew, Liz, but he’s not answering his transmission band. He probably just had a rough morning. I’ll contact him again at the Collection Point, but right now we have to get going.” Felix strode to the edge of the platform. He twirled his finger through the air, motioning for all of them to join him. “Here it comes!”

And, as he predicted, the collection pod rose up from the water. It looked four times the size of a standard pod, and sported a storage unit at the back to store the tanks in. The door slid open, and Felix gestured them inside. Malcolm made for one of the two front seats, while Buff and Eliza took in the middle seats, and Kasen one at the back. Malcolm pulled a face at him, but the pod began to move and he fell against the window.

“Gmf! Serves you right,” Eliza smirked.

They whizzed through the Metropolis of Light to the Southern Collection Point. The city centre faded in their wake, and they entered the less luxurious, more cramped, Southern Living Section. The apartments closest to the city centre proved on par with those in the east, but as they approached the suburban area, the prestige declined.

“Home sweet home,” sighed Felix as they drove past a somewhat lopsided, mostly crumbling, apartment building.

“Wait, you live in the South?” asked Malcolm, a tinge of disgust, of judgement, in his voice.

Felix glowered at him. “Not all of our parents have their own businesses.” He looked back at the building. “And yes, I used to live here. After my first year as a Guardian, I rented an apartment in the city centre.”

“What about your parents?” asked Eliza.

“They’re still here, along with my nan and two sisters. I send them two-hundred units each month, but they never accept it.” Felix turned his head to the front again. “Apparently, Guardian units are units from the Dark.”

“That’s harsh …” whispered Eliza.

The pod went silent, and they drove like this for the rest of the way. Kasen didn’t mind keeping to himself, despite the tension. It gave him ample time to survey the Southern Living Section, a place he hardly ever visited. Most railway pods were still first generation, all battered, rickety, and with graffiti on their sides.

The Southern Living Section – together with the city centre – proved the birthplace of the Metropolis of Light. Everywhere else followed through expansion: the Western Farming District, the Northern Resource District, and the Eastern Living Section. When the latter had been announced as finished, everyone who could afford it had moved away. Those who couldn’t – like farmhands or nurses – were set to live in the south.

The fallen place.

“Here we are, beauties,” announced Felix. He pressed his hands against the front window of the pod, framing the Southern Collection Point with his fingers. “Are you ready to see what Guardians do for a living?”

“I can’t wait …” droned Malcolm under his breath.

They pulled up to the first checkpoint, the front entrance. Felix held his wrist out the window, and the Gatherers scanned his Chip. The LED’s around gates went from red to green, and the collection pod whizzed through.

Kasen, who had never been inside a Collection Point before, plastered himself against the rear window. From what he saw on the outside, he always thought it was but a single building, essentially positioned in the Dark, but from the inside, it proved a series of brick buildings – garages with railway pods, warehouses with pipelines that pumped the Dark into tanks, and a cafeteria – all surrounding a courtyard, and flanked by a gate to the outside. A sort of stone bridge reached across it, currently upon which stood a crowd of people.

Not Gatherers, but civilians.

More of them rushed across the courtyard, clumping together at the gate. They wielded cameras, microphones, and tablets.

The press.

“What’s going on over there?” Eliza was the first to ask.

Kasen tried to get a better look, but the pod turned right into a garage. The door slid open, and they hopped out. Two armed Gatherers came up to them, both in insolation suits. They carried tanks on their backs, empty.

“Are you lot here to collect the Dark?” asked one of them.

Felix took out a pair of long, weighted gloves from the back of the pod. “Yep. I’m showing the recruits how it’s done.”

The Gatherers exchanged a look. “I’m afraid we’ve got no Dark for you today,” said the one who spoke before.

“What do you mean?” asked Felix. He checked the calendar on his transmission band, zooming in on the next collection date. Today. “Nope, it states quite clearly: Scheduled collection at Southern Collection Point.”

“Well, yes, we’re aware of the date. It’s not exactly a scheduling mistake,” the second Gatherer clarified.

The first one added, “No one’s started up the pumps this morning, and we’re yet to inspect the tanks for travel safety.” A couple more Gatherers ran past the garage, and he glanced over. “There was an … incident last night.”

“An incident?” asked Eliza, suddenly alarmed.

“Yes,” the Gatherer said, “but it’s nothing to concern yourself with. The Commander’s already assessed the situation.”

Kasen approached the garage opening. The second Gatherer made to stop him, but he managed to glimpse enough in time. He gasped. The press had parted to either side of the gate, which was slowly opening on a screen. A couple more Gatherers emerged from under it, dragging a person, a corpse, behind them.

“Someone was attacked?” asked Kasen, mostly to himself.

“What?” gasped Eliza.

“Move, I need to see this!” Malcolm pushed past them and ran outside. Kasen, Eliza, and Buff all followed.

“Stop right there, Guardians!” one of the Gatherers shouted. “This is not your derestriction! You have to fall back!”

“Darling, I doubt this is the press’s derestriction either,” sang Felix just before he too approached the commotion. He made past them all, blocking them from getting too close. “Fall back. Give them space to work.”

The Gatherers laid the body on the concrete, then cleared away. One of them contacted the medical squad – “This is Commander Eli. We need urgent medical attention in the courtyard!” – while the others held back the press. Kasen looked for his mother, but she wasn’t there. She hadn’t worked since the incident in the east, so it didn’t really surprise him. A part of him was actually relieved, though, as he had no idea what this was.

A setup for another attack, maybe?

The gate slid shut.

No attack.

“Look at him,” whispered Eliza with her hand before her mouth. “It’s as if he was eaten alive or something …”

Kasen dared to look at the corpse through one eye. The person wore an insolation suit, but only strips of it remained. Chunks of flesh were missing from their limbs, and they had no more blood left to bleed on the concrete. Their helmet was still intact, although it looked riddled with scratches, scuffmarks, and bitemarks.

The team of medics ran across the courtyard. They carried a stretcher with them, but put it down the moment they saw the body. The lead medic gestured for his team to surround the corpse, while he himself lowered by its head. He checked the person’s neck for a pulse, logged it on his transmission band, and turned to the press.

“I’m about to take off the deceased’s helmet,” he announced, “so I’d like to request all media should be turned off.”

“This is only until we’ve established the deceased’s identity,” added Commander Eli, taking off his own helmet.

The press groaned, but obeyed.

The lead medic grappled the helmet with both hands. He twisted it slightly, which cracked the corpse’s neck, and slipped it off. Eliza wheezed under her breath, while Malcolm let out sickly little snickers.

“Wicked,” he murmured.

Kasen’s throat swelled. He knew he shouldn’t watch, but couldn’t pry away his eyes. He was so used to seeing this type of gore on the news, that he never really thought about how different it would be in person. But this was life in the Metropolis of Light. Every other day presented more blood, more loss, and more death.

The lead medic successfully took off the helmet. He handed it to another medic, who placed it on the concrete. The corpse’s hair lay plastered over its eyes – likely from sweat – and their skin hued a blue-grey colour.

The colour of death, of the Corrupted.

“Who is that?” asked the Commander to a Gatherer next to him.

“No idea, sir. A recruit, maybe?”

“No, he’s too old to be a recruit.”

The lead medic craned over the corpse, blocking it from Kasen’s view. He cut open its sleeve, and scanned its Citizen Chip. It took a few seconds, but the scanner beeped, and a frown cut between his eyebrows.

“Commander Eli,” he said.

The Commander approached, plugging his nose from the stench. “What is it? Have you established the man’s identity?”

The lead medic got to his feet and shrugged. “I’m afraid, well … this person’s not in the Gatherer database, sir.”

Commander Eli frowned. He crouched, took the scanner from the lead medic, and scanned the corpse’s Chip himself. The scanner beeped much faster this time, and he barely looked at the results before he rose.

“This can’t be right,” he declared, returning the scanner.

“How did something like this even happen, sir?” asked the lead medic.

Commander Eli didn’t answer. He gave his helmet to the Gatherer next to him, then turned on his heels with his hands on his hips. He raised his head to Felix, Kasen, Malcolm, Eliza, and Buff – the group of Guardians.

“Which one of you is in charge?” he asked.

Malcolm pushed Felix to the front. Eliza growled at him, but he merely shrugged. “What? He is in charge!” he insisted.

Felix put his hands by his sides. “Felix Tatum, Senior Recruitment Officer, sir.” He put his hand to his head and approached in a soldierly manner, but hardly gave two steps before his hand lowered again, and his face paled.

“Officer Tatum,” Commander Eli went on, “according to this man’s Citizen Chip, he’s one of you guys. A Senior –”

“Recruitment Officer,” Felix chimed in.

“Officer Tatum, do you know this man?”

Felix made no reply. He pushed past the Commander, his body trembling, and fell down by the corpse’s side. The moment his knees hit the concrete, a yelp escaped his lips. He doubled over, tears gushing down his cheeks.

The press all of a sudden regained life. They broke past the Gatherers, and surrounded Felix and the corpse.

“Felix,” Eliza began, but Kasen held her back.

“Don’t you recognise him?” he said in a voice that scared even himself. It was cold and without emotion, quiet.

Eliza took a step forward, but then retreated two more. She bumped right into Kasen, spun around, and wrapped her arms around his middle. “Matt … It’s Matt!” Kasen felt her start to cry, warm tears staining his shirt.

“Matt, really?” asked Malcolm. “What are the odds?”

Buff looked at him funnily, and they exchanged scoffs.

“Here, take her.” Kasen gently transferred Eliza to Buff. He walked over to Felix, hesitantly, who held Matt by the cheeks. The entire display reminded him of when he had seen Clay at the hospital, and it all flooded back to him. The shock. The pain. The absolute heartache. And Matt was not only Felix’s best friend, but his love.

“Felix,” he began to say, but a pair of Gatherers yanked him back.

Kasen thought about writhing, but a familiar clicking sound distracted him. He needn’t turn his head to know the maker of said sound: Felicity. The Gatherers yanked him back even farther, making way for her to pass. She stopped next to Felix, only to wince when seeing Matt’s face. Her hand clapped over her mouth.

“Felix,” she said mutedly, “m – my condolences.”

Felix looked up at her, his eyes glistening with tears. “Felicity … how did you manage to get here so fast?”

“I’m the Commander of the Guardians,” she said, “I know everything the moment it happens.” She crouched down, but her pencil skirt wouldn’t allow for all the way. She held onto Felix’s shoulder for support.

Felix stroked across Matt’s forehead. “He was such a good person. I – I don’t understand how this could’ve happened.”

“Suicides happen all the time.” Felicity rose again. She stepped over the bloody helmet and approached Commander Eli. “Have the body transferred to Craedor Fortress. We’ll contact his loved ones from there.”

Felix jumped up after Felicity. “Wait, what? You’re ruling this a suicide?” He battled through the sea of curious Gatherers and press to reach Felicity and Commander Eli. “Matt wouldn’t just walk out into the Dark!”

Felicity turned. “I agree, Felix,” she said, adjusting her glasses, “which meant he must’ve done it on purpose.”

“Guardians do have a tendency for extravagant deaths,” admitted Commander Eli.

Felix’s face shadowed with horror. “No, you’re twisting my words … I know Matt, and he’s the most stable person I know!” He grabbed at Felicity as she whirled around and walked off with the Commander, but a pair of Gatherers seized him by the arms. He writhed and kicked, fighting to break free.

“Calm yourself, Guardian!” they ordered.

But Felix didn’t listen. “No! I must speak to Commander Felicity! They’re crazy if they think Matt would’ve done himself in!”

“The only crazy person around here, is you,” said one of the Gatherers, then made to cuff his hands behind his back.

Kasen and Eliza intercepted this. Eliza spoke, “Please, no, he’s not crazy. The deceased was his boyfriend, and he’s just a little emotional right now. He’ll – He’ll calm down in a second, isn’t that right, Kasen?”

Kasen pulled up his shoulders. “I don’t know, Eliza. I would’ve kept fighting if I were him.”

“Idiot!” she snapped. “We’re trying to get him free, not committed!” She aimed to slap him, but he ducked before she could.

The Gatherers rolled their eyes at them.

“Guardians … you’re all equally as crazy.” They uncuffed Felix and shoved them at Kasen and Eliza. “Here, make sure he doesn’t go around attacking anyone else. Next time, we might not be as nice to him.”

Felix clung to Kasen. He spat through his teeth, “Maybe I might not be as nice to you either, beefcake!”

The Gatherers made to seize him again, but Eliza ushered him away before they could. She giggled nervously under her breath, then waved at the Gatherers before they walked off in the other direction, clearly agitated.

Kasen and Eliza escorted Felix back to the pod, where Buff and Malcolm waited for them. They opened the pod door, and let Felix lay on the back seat with his legs hanging outside. His face looked ever as white, and his eyes a pinkish-red. He sniffed a little, and Eliza offered him a handkerchief from her pocket.

“Felix,” said Kasen after a moment of thought, “if Matt didn’t kill himself, what do you think happened out there?”

“Kasen!” hissed Eliza.

“Murder,” said Felix, sitting up.

Eliza hiccupped. “M – Murder?”

“Ludicrous!” shouted Malcolm.

Kasen spoke above their protests. “Murder? Why do you think that?”

“Matt wasn’t suicidal, believe me. And neither was Mary Bates.” Felix stared up into Kasen’s eyes, for the first time looking as though he actually knew what he was saying. “The two of them have been talking for a while. They shared all these theories about someone on the inside helping the Dark with their plans.”

Eliza looked around the garage, then hissed, “Felix! An insider? You can’t just make such crazy allegations!”

“Again, this is totally absurd,” insisted Malcolm. “I think Felix hit his head somewhere. Or he just finally lost it too.”

“Shut up,” Kasen ordered, “let him speak.”

Felix propped his elbows on his knees. “I know it sounds crazy. I didn’t believe it myself at first, but now I’m more sure than ever. Think about it: Both of them spoke out about an insider, and now both of them –”

“Are dead,” Kasen finished.