Volume 12: Never Look Back
|
The night was as pitch-black as before, relieved only by a few lanterns that glimmered in the distance. The automation was still showing an enormous yellow arrow directly in my eye-line, urgently flashing on and off and indicating that we should go right. I took Selene by the arm. She was still fiddling in some obscure fashion with her garments, as if it was really important at this time. "Come on," I hissed in her ear, "Go right. Keep close to me." We slipped out of the door and over the boards of the sidewalk in front of the house, hugging the shadows. I expected them to creak noisily, but they were strangely silent. The automation must be working overtime to ensure that our movements were not heard. We hopped off the sidewalk and scurried behind the buildings, still following the direction signs flashed up by the PA. I imagined that the automation was doing its best to make us invisible was well. The heavy clothing might be sweaty and constricting, but the dark colors meant that, for the most part, we would not be standing out. The automation only had to mask our faces and we would be effectively invisible to all but the closest observer. "Where are we going?" Selene whispered, as we paused to peer nervously around the edge of another darkened building. "We're getting out of here," I replied softly, urging her forward, "Just follow me." "But this path leads to the lake!" she insisted. I did not know this, of course, but there was no time to explain anything now. We hurried onwards, partially hidden by the fences and garden sheds that delineated the vegetable plots and kitchen gardens which surrounded each homestead in the compound. The gardens ended a little before the point where the the boundary fence and its ramparts came down to the lake side. There was no obvious means of escape, other than attempting to swim - which I was certainly in no position to try. Besides, I was sure that there would be hidden, sunken barriers and traps which would impede, perhaps fatally, any attempt to leave by that route. The moon chose this moment to emerge from the clouds. Even so, the automation was insistent and led us to an unremarkable section of the fence perhaps twenty meters from the water's edge. I followed the arrows, with Selene tagging along right behind me, until we were both hidden in shadow below the guard's walkway above our heads. The automation's directions flickered out for a moment, causing me to gasp nervously. Then, an arrow appeared, indicating what looked like a knothole in the stout timbers of the fence. On and off, on and off, flickered the automation. Eventually, I took the hint and stuck a finger gingerly into the hole that was being so very insistently pointed out to me. There was a click, and a small section of the fence swung outwards on smooth invisible hinges. The doorway was low and narrow, with barely enough room for us to pass though. My eyes widened, I'm sure, and Selene's face was a picture of astonishment, her own eyes bright in the sudden moonlight. "Come on!" I whispered urgently at Selene. She slipped through, followed closely by myself. I paused only for long enough to bump the hidden door closed with my ass. The automation was pointing the way again, directing us along a barely visible path along the edge of the lake, mostly concealed by trees and bushes - in stark contrast to the brutally cleared swathe that was to be found on the outside of the fence elsewhere, I had noted. We scurried down the path, I allowed myself to think for one brief moment that we had managed to get away undetected. But just then, a harsh voice sounded from behind us, an urgent alarm mingled with surprise. "Run," I shouted to Selene, "Keep close. Don't look back." There was a series of sharp cracks from behind us. "They're shooting at us!" Selene cried. I had not recognized the sound of gunfire until sensed a bullet tearing through the undergrowth not two meters from where I was. I ran on, as fast as I could, trailed by Selene. We were being followed, I was sure of it, and I could not tell where we were or how far we had to go. Amongst the shouts, I thought I could pick out the sound of the Reverend's voice, issuing instructions that seemed at once impossible and contradictory. Bodies came crashing through the woods behind me. The PA's urgent arrow showed that we should leave the path right here, and I dragged Selene bodily sideways into the undergrowth. We pressed on together, leaves and branches brushing against my face and arms and legs. I did what I could to shield Selene from the ravages of the foliage, relying on my own tough skin to deflect the worst of their effects. Quite suddenly, I thought I recognized where we were, even without the intervention of the PA. In the bright moonlight, I realized that this was the lake at which I had enjoyed a picnic with my friends not so long ago and - the connection made me gasp aloud even as I ran - where I had glimpsed the Reverend masturbating in the bushes. The yellow arrows that had been subliminally guiding me all this time abruptly disappeared. I confess I was immensely relived. During his briefing, Dragon had told me that his special automation was programmed to deactivate, to destroy itself as soon as we had passed over the edge of the No Nanotechnology Zone and were safe. Simultaneously, the pursuers seemed to fade into the distance. We had either outrun them, or they had been discouraged from following us further by the normal PA's protective police action, or at least the threat of that action. I slowed to a stop and tried to catch my breath, catching Selene as she stumbled behind me. "It's OK," I said, between gasps, "It's OK, we're safe now. Catch your breath." Selene coughed and panted for a few long moments. "Are you sure?" "Yes. Yes, I am. But we need to press on. We've a way to go yet." She nodded her acceptance, with not even enough breath to speak again. We walked on slowly, picking our way among the trees. The automation, now in normal operation, was able to provide us with a degree of illumination, enough so that we could avoid the foliage for the most part. I followed the guidance of my Mapz(TM) subscription which increasingly gelled with my own memory of this area, and which led us to the roadway where our bus had delivered our party for that fun lakeside picnic in the sun. There was nothing to be seen on the road now, just a dark tunnel made by the trees and fitfully illuminated by the automation. The Mapz(TM) began to indicate a route to make our way to Dragon's house, although it would be a long walk to the nearest metro station. Selene was flagging visibly, looking completely exhausted and now barely able to put one foot in front of another. I was feeling winded too, and I was beginning to wonder about finding somewhere to rest for a while. Fortunately, we were collected after just a few minutes by Dragon's car. The vehicle slid to a stop just a few meters away, its lights dimmed and the door hissed open. Dragon was not present and the car was operating, as usual, automatically. "Here's our ride," I said to Selene reassuringly, although I was not sure she had even heard me. She collapsed on the carpet inside the car, falling deeply asleep immediately. All I could do was my best to make her comfortable while we were whisked back to Dragon's house.
|
Part 4