Take: Erase, #2

Prologue

6424

THE FOUL INTERIOR OF Aves Atrium was covered by a pristine ivory exterior. Beneath the mask of innocence was a decaying prison. Novak’s gaunt frame lay fractured in the middle of it, she was inches away from the only exit. It was only an illusion. There was no real freedom left in their world anymore. The glow of despair beckoned her into its arms, so she crawled towards it. Her blood left a trail behind her but she did nothing to stop it from flowing out of her damaged leg. The knife was still protruding out of it.

Morgan knelt beside her. ‘Sorry sis but you can’t run from this nightmare,’ he mumbled a half-hearted apology as he ripped the knife out. She tried to scream. But the shock of his betrayal burnt a hole in her oesophagus.

She struggled against her conflicting feelings, he was suppose to be her brother. Unable to speak, her shallow breaths were magnified by the silence. She rolled off her stomach and stared at the decaying ceiling. Her toe brushed against the rotting wood as it crumbled against the slightest touch. The stench of death permeated the air. She spluttered and coughed but a thick layer of grit clung to her teeth.

The maze of rooms did nothing to quell her fear. She was trapped. They were surrounded by withering and shrieking voices. She had always felt above the craziness but now she was devoured by it.

An object collided with her head before it fell to the floor with a thud. The jolt awakened her tired mind. Her eyes were sluggish. She was blind as the cavernous room moved without her.

‘It’s your new identity, pick it up.’ Morgan’s usual dull expression was replaced with a manic exhilaration. ‘Raven.’

‘In twenty years we need you to be ready.’ The disembodied voice said with asperity. It echoed around the vaulted ceilings and empty space.

Novak cringed as she realised who was speaking. ‘Say it to my face if you dare. Even with an injury, I’d still kill you.’

‘You’re not worth the time it would take to trek over there. If you don’t want it we can give it to someone else but I think it matches your skill set so perfectly.’ Avery’s voice was even more irritating through the humming crackle of the loud speaker. She was on the other side of the atrium, taunting them from a distance.

‘Don’t care.’ Novak flicked the file away as she tried to contain her rage. Her fingertips were raw. The layers of skin were stripped away, everything she touched exacerbated the pain.

‘Careful, you’ll die for that choice, is it really what you want?’

‘I’ll no longer be what I want, but what I need. I need your poison without it I’ll be nothing, without you I’ll feel nothing. Isn’t that death?’ Novak smiled as she held up the flame.

‘No!’

She threw the lighter into the accelerant. Whoosh.

Regret trickled down her spine as she realised how much she enjoyed it. She clutched her mouth as she tried to quiet the screams of elation. The flames almost caught her as they spread quicker than her imagination had predicted. They licked the rotting floor as she lost herself to them.

A hauntingly beautiful collage of cobalt, lilac, marigold and most importantly scarlet. It popped, crackled, and sizzled against the damp and damaged wood. Water bubbled out of the singed and flaming slab of vegetation. Until it exploded.

1

6444

THE BRISK NIGHT AIR was burrowing its way into Zoe’s skin. She could feel it crawling around her body. The sky had darkened quicker than she had anticipated. Her ears were alert to the smallest sound. A dull thud was making its way closer to her position. She suppressed a shiver as her feet pounded the pavement. A steam train of huffs and puffs made her hesitate. Either a runner was behind her or someone was suffering an asthma attack. The footsteps suddenly changed direction as the wheezing continued. She glanced back. His feet were barely able to withstand another step as the noisy runner stumbled past and slowly disappeared into the dusk.

She continued to trudge towards the shortcut if she was not careful she would take the wrong exit and end up back where she started. Another delay that she did not need. Her absentmindedness had already made her late. Part of her was resisting, unable to make peace with what she had to do.

A sharp noise made her head snap back. The wind blew through her and rustled the leaves of a nearby hedge. She laughed at her cowardice. It was a piece of plastic that was following her.

The corridor was foreboding, she was fenced in. She held her breath against the sharp smells and sprinted through the darkened alleyway. Her lungs burst as she curled over before she made it. A weird mixture of spicy and sweet food entered her nostrils. She was not sure if it was someone’s dinner or rubbish from a nearby trash can. Her legs were numb, she could not feel the difference between the skin that hid behind her clothes and her exposed flesh.

As she hobbled around the corner two bright lights pierced through the dim. She was temporarily blinded as a car roared to life. Its exhaust spluttered against the sudden strain.

Zoe’s whole body shook.

A screeching noise made her flinch. Without her hearing, she felt vulnerable. The car pulled away but the coincidence had unnerved her. There was no time to turn back. She was almost there and now her mind was set, there would be no changing it. Whatever the future would bring, she would accept the consequences of her own actions.

All of her senses were heightened as she rushed around the last bend and ran up the concrete steps.

The door was ajar. She crept inside and collapsed onto the musty carpet. Her hands were stuck to the stained rug as she trembled uncontrollably. The sweat on her forehead was dripping down her face. Her eyes adjusted to the room as she crawled towards the kitchen. A knife block was above her. She stood on her unsteady knees and reached for one of the knives. The knife gave her the courage she needed to walk towards the stairs.

Every step was torture as she slinked towards the bedroom. The aged building was fusty. Each step could be her last as she sunk into the creaky floor. The floorboards sounded like they would break at any moment.

Her foot went further than she expected. The distance to the last step was such a surprise that her foot slammed into the top step. She paused. The noise was too loud. Nothing moved, not even the unstable house. Her ears were straining against the silence.

She shuffled forward. The old building creaked and moaned against the intrusion but she ignored it. All the doors were open, she located the bedroom door and scuttled inside. Her heart was beating faster with every noise she made.

Enfield was snoring. Every breath caught in her throat and made her snort. The long pauses between breaths made Zoe panic. She hugged the knife too tightly as she hovered over Enfield. In the dim light Zoe could only see the whites of Enfield’s eyes. It was easier that way, she did not look human. Zoe raised her weapon.

The first blow hit an artery. Enfield’s hands came up to defend herself but it was too late. Blood flew around the room as Zoe’s attack became more frenzied and less precise. She was not sure if Enfield was dead but she did not want to stop. Her rage gave her the strength she needed to continue.

Zoe fell back onto the carpet. The only noise she could hear were the short gasps that were coming from her fatigued lungs. No matter how much she panted, she could not recover. She was as lifeless as her victim.

2

Alexander struggled through the sloppy mud and tangled mounds of wild grass. His socks were coated in the foul smelling mush. It was the fifth time he had lost his shoe. As he pulled and twisted it, the force almost made him lose his balance. He squeaked. It took all his core strength to correct his overbalance. The last place he wanted to be was swimming in the muddy porridge of neglect and possibly sewerage.

Fatigued by the ordeal, he rested against a willow tree. Its silky leaves brushed past his cheek as the coarse-grained bark dug into his hand. He reclined against the textured surface but almost fell through the tree. It was rotten to its core.

Terger Headquarters was full of duplicitous snakes. He was new to the game but he could already feel their poison seeping in. They were encircled by the valley. Its vast forest changed from isolation to urbanisation within mere minutes. Terger’s valley, and river trapped them within Erase’s cage as the fault lines destabilized the ground beneath them. It was chosen for that reason. They were the guinea pigs to every new technology. For a select few who had chosen this life, they were not trapped by the lifestyle but absorbed by it.

A vivid flash of colour made Alexander smile. His pursuer stumbled past him. He jumped away from the willow tree, droplets of water splashed around him.

The noise frightened his pursuer who dove into the shallow water and serrated grass.

Alexander allowed himself one moment of revenge before he suppressed the chuckle. Feigning ignorance, he continued towards the darkness.

‘Alex. It’s Cat,’ a friendly but unfamiliar voice called out to him from the darkest part of the dense forest.

‘Detective,’ Alexander corrected. His eyes quickly found and analysed the snitch. He had imagined her as a tall and slender young woman. But what he saw was a harsh contradiction: stocky and weathered, her blonde hair rampant around insane eyes. She was comfortable in the wasteland.

Suddenly she jumped over a tree stump and landed on top of him. She was coated in makeup and looked ridiculously fake against such a natural environment. Her eyes sparkled with a soft green that gave way to a dull grey. It captured the beauty of the green and ruined it. She had asked for him. It made him shiver now he was face to face with such a disturbed creature. She had provided accurate information in the past but this was the first time she had insisted on meeting in an isolated place with a specific person.

‘I prefer Alex,’ her honeyed voice betrayed her words. ‘Detective, born thirty years ago, closely related to Elizabeth and Sam Enfield, and Ray Alexander. The makers of Erase. This is an honour.’

Alexander tried to mask his surprise as he reached for his weapon. His fingers twitched in anticipation, he did not know what she was capable of.

‘Adopted by Amy Arkin and raised with Dylan Arkin-Landyn, a druggie—’

‘He’s a gardener, the best in town. What’s your source?’

‘Your rank is impressive considering your age. But you’ll never be allowed below rank thirty.’

‘That information is restricted,’ he raised an eyebrow. ‘How do you know so much?’

She danced around then twirled around a tree, the movement was strategic now she was behind him.

Before he could object, her hand was in his pocket. Surprised by the sudden search, he turned towards her and opened his mouth to speak but she was busy inspecting his badge.

‘In your photo, your eyes look as deep as a sea of blue,’ Cat’s smoky voice gave way to a tremulous babble. ‘But today you have a dark core that’s guarded by a swirling of green and hazel specks. Deliciously wicked!’

Instinctively Alexander stepped backwards and slammed into a tree. The sharp thorns, that surrounded it, stuck into his protective jacket. He continued to analyse her. The truth would lie somewhere deep within the deceit, he could never trust her.

‘For someone so warm and kind you can be so cruel at times,’ her husky voice was brittle. She was visibly disturbed by his reaction. Even though she was masked by her baggy clothes and makeup, he could still tell that it stung.

‘We’ve met before?’ His face contorted. For some reason, he did not trust the grotesque individual. Her attraction to him was the start of the deception. It was meant to distract him from the information she wanted to remain hidden. He would not know if the secret was to his enemy’s detriment or his, until it was too late.

‘You’re the detective, figure it out. When you do you’ll know where to find me.’

He looked around her as he planned his escape route.

‘No. I’m not finished with you yet.’ She grabbed his chin and glared at him.

‘Well I’ve had enough. Tell me something of value or I’m going to arrest you.’

‘Hmm that might be fun,’ she searched his eyes and smiled when she found what she was looking for but what that was he could only guess. ‘I didn’t just pick this spot because it’s romantic. There’s something in the woods not far from where we’re standing now.’

‘Are you the witness or the perpetrator?’ He asked, but this time he did not move away from her.

‘Don’t be naïve, doesn’t suit you,’ she said as her hand left his chin and squashed his nose. ‘Find me next time, don’t make me find you.’

‘Where specifically?’

Cat’s sharp fingernail waggled towards the woods behind Alexander. He only glanced behind him for a second but when he looked back she had disappeared.

The iridescent leaves gave the ground depth and interest. It was in harsh contrast to the pale object that Alexander saw. Whoever had set the scene had done their research. But he had been around enough dead bodies to know that this was not one of them. He covered his nose and mouth but the smell of putrescine and cadaverine was missing. The automaton’s limbs were littered with deep cuts. Its tight-fitting top and jeans should have slowed putrefaction in certain areas and the cuts sped it up in others, especially around its arms. But instead of seeing an exposed and bloated abdomen, it was a cartooned and ballooned version of decomposition.

On closer inspection the illusion was broken. To him the blood looked more like tomato soup. Its eyes bulged especially the right one, supposedly it had been gouged out but it looked like it had not been fitted properly. The work was haphazard. They had been in a rush to finish it and it showed.

No one in Terger would ever see through the illusion. It was a planned distraction to cover something more sinister.

His instinct told him that this ruse would not satisfy. They had been defiant. The dummy could not pass as a human. There was no sense of pride or accomplishment to be found in their work, just embarrassment. At least one of them could not sustain the lie.

Even though the murders were staged, the victims were real and they were all missing. No one was allowed to search for them because technically they were already dead.

He flinched.

More deceit would occur before the day was through.

3

The leaves rustled as Zoe became tangled in the sharp bushes and branches. Even though she had crushed them, they sprung back into place.

She crashed through the foliage and landed in something slimy. The thick pile of coal-black sludge clung to her skin while the smell invaded her nostrils. She started to laugh at herself.

The only person that truly understood the abuse she faced daily was Alexander. From the moment they were introduced, there was a spark as they recognised a temerity in each other that seemed out of place. She had become weary of the system. They gave everything they had but nothing ever changed. Change had been the only constant in her life so far. Now she craved it.

She rolled out of the pit. The serene environment calmed her but the feeling disappeared as soon as she saw the body. Its eyes and mouth were open in silent horror. She felt her stomach gurgle. The first thing she noticed was that the area smelt of primrose. She was not meant to be there. The lie relied on timing, Cooper’s presence and the team’s inexperience. If someone else got there first, the true evidence was already gone. The lie was always more convincing whenever Cooper appeared and controlled it.

It was a strange sight to behold. The scene showed both a lack of patience and an abundance of it. There were delicate brush strokes on the synthetic skin. But overall the automaton was unconvincing. The worst she had ever seen. Unfortunately she was no stranger to death so just like Alexander she knew it was all fake. The reason behind the distraction was elusive. Even with their combined efforts they were yet to solve it.

‘Kershaw.’

Zoe scanned the surrounding area.

The new forensic photographer appeared from the other side of the valley with all her equipment in tow. It made a low humming sound.

‘Zoe, nice to meet you.’ Her nostrils flared as a sharp smell made its way over to her.

‘Likewise.’ Kershaw’s face did not register any of it, she just continued to do her job which was to perpetuate the lie. Zoe could not tell if Kershaw was a willing participant or if she had been brainwashed.

‘Incident number N24 target OE_14 location...’ As soon as Cooper appeared the smell of putrescine and cadaverine intensified. She had to flee from it and from his disapproving glare.

Obsession started to take root as Zoe looked up at the falling leaves and sighed. It was too late for her now. She could not stop until they caught them and exposed their game to everyone.

A dark figure appeared. The sun