Chapter 5: Back to Downs
Meanwhile, in the Downs Region. Commander Cecil had just arrived back with Daily, who was badly injured, and the body of Emily. Miro and a small group of underground Linap enforcers approached them.
‘I see you put an end to their little escape,’ said Miro to Cecil as he watched him climb out of the flying vehicle.
‘Three are dead, and this one is not looking too sharp,’ replied Cecil as he pointed to the enforcers to remove Daily and Emily from the flying vehicle.
‘Not exactly what I asked for,’ said Miro, sounding a little annoyed. ‘We don’t want to risk him saying too much.’
Miro watched the enforcers remove Emily from the flying vehicle.
‘Where are the other two?’ asked Miro.
‘They are rotting in the wreckage,’ chuckled Cecil. ‘Don’t worry. This lot aren’t going to find them.’
‘You’ve had a very long day,’ said Miro to Cecil. ‘Come join me and Hamish in the hotel for a drink.’
‘Yeah, that sounds great, thank you,’ replied Cecil as the enforcers rushed Daily into an emergency vehicle. ‘It’s good to be appreciated.’
Tiberius, who was still believed to be Hamish, and Duffo were sitting at a table casually chatting in the hotel restaurant. Polly was standing behind them. Miro and Cecil approached them.
‘Welcome back,’ said Tiberius as he gestured towards a chair for Cecil to sit on.
Cecil smiled and sat down. Miro sat down beside Cecil.
‘Polly, could you please get our friends a nice coconut filled with the region’s finest juices?’ requested Tiberius.
Polly headed towards the bar to make the drink.
‘Were you able to handle the escapees?’ Tiberius asked Cecil.
‘Orcilla, the twin, and the technician were killed, and her fool husband is in critical condition,’ replied Cecil, sounding proud as he quickly glanced at Miro, who had a concerned look on his face.
‘This is truly tragic, but I’m sure you did your best to save lives,’ said Tiberius calmly. ‘We must give Orcilla and little Yassmay the funeral they deserve. The Downs residents would appreciate that.’
‘We don’t have their bodies,’ replied Cecil, sounding slightly nervous. ‘I didn’t feel the need…’
‘You didn’t feel the need to think,’ interrupted Tiberius abruptly. ‘This is their leader, and they have a sister still in Downs.’
‘Are they even dead, or are you just covering for your incompetence?’ asked Duffo angrily.
‘I took photographs,’ said Cecil in a panicked tone. ‘Look!’
Cecil pulled out his phone and showed both Tiberius and Duffo.
‘This is beyond distasteful,’ said Tiberius as he turned his head away from the photographs.
Polly approached the table carrying two giant novelty coconuts.
‘Please, Polly, could you give Duffo Cecil’s coconut?’ requested Tiberius. ‘I’m now displeased with Commander Cecil.’
Polly placed one coconut on the table in front of Duffo and the other in front of Miro.
‘Thank you, Polly,’ said Duffo and Miro in unison. Polly nodded and returned to standing behind Tiberius.
‘How may I rectify my error?’ asked Cecil as he glanced across at Duffo, who was slowly and joyfully sucking on his straw.
Tiberius put his hands on his face and leaned his head back.
‘Go back to the wreckage and get their bodies,’ said Miro firmly as he turned to Cecil.
‘Yes, of course,’ replied Cecil as he quickly got to his feet and then rushed out of the hotel restaurant.
Meanwhile, Daily had arrived at the medical centre. He had been rushed into surgery. Yassme, who had been told about Daily’s condition, had arrived to help.
Yassme, with the help of medical technicians, was able to stabilise Daily’s condition quickly. It appeared he was going to be fine.
When Yassme exited the surgery, two underground Linap enforcers approached her.
‘We need to question him,’ said an enforcer.
‘He needs to sleep,’ replied Yassme firmly.
The enforcers tried to push past Yassme, but she forcefully blocked them.
‘Try that again and you’ll both be taking a long nap,’ snapped Yassme angrily.
The enforcers reached for their batons.
‘A little eager, eh?' called out Head Enforcer Eugene. ‘In Downs, we respect each other’s space.’
The two enforcers looked at each other and then backed away.
‘These new enforcers are horrid,’ said Yassme to Eugene loudly so that the enforcers could hear her.
‘The packaging might be off, but I’m sure I can salvage something on the inside, friend,’ said Eugene as he glanced at the two disgruntled enforcers who were staring at him and Yassme.
‘Daily was with Yassmay,’ said Yassme, sounding concerned. ‘What if my sister is hurt as bad or worse?’
‘I bet Yassmay is having a picnic or riding a rogue Sape,’ said Eugene as he rubbed Yassme’s hair.
‘I just want her to be here,’ said Yassme as she hugged Eugene.
‘Sapes are really stubborn, friend,’ replied Eugene. ‘It might take a few weeks if she’s short on carrots.’
Yassme and Eugene decided to spend the night in the medical centre. Yassme would check on Daily every few hours. Each time she checked, he was still asleep. Eugene waited in the waiting room. Yassme would return to him, and they kept each other company throughout the night.
Around mid-morning, Miro and Duffo arrived at the medical centre. Yassme and Eugene approached them.
‘We appreciate you keeping guard of the fugitive,’ said Duffo in a cocky tone.
‘Fugitives, friend,’ replied Eugene as his eyes started to dart. ‘The enforcers’ attention never drifts from the accused, the guilty, and the suspicious.’
‘Well, we’re here for Daily,’ said Miro in a stern tone.
‘You’ve already put him through enough,’ replied Yassme in an angry tone. ‘You’ll leave him alone.’
‘His reckless behaviour cost your twin sister her life,’ said Duffo, shaking his head. ‘Yet, you still defend him.’
‘My sister could never die in a vehicle crash,’ said Yassme as she walked closer to Duffo and stared up at him.
‘I’m afraid he’s right,’ said Miro in a solemn tone. ‘Commander Cecil confirmed her death. The enforcers will release her body tomorrow. I’m deeply sorry for your loss.’
‘I’m afraid you’re wrong,’ said Eugene firmly. ‘Enforcers don’t deal with bodies.’
‘He’s talking about the real enforcers,’ said Duffo angrily. ‘Not your bunch of losers.’
‘Ha, the words of an amateur who knows nothing of sleuthing,’ replied Eugene, raising an eyebrow. ‘I suggest you leave or I’ll give you a taste of how enforcement works around here.’
‘I apologise for our blunt approach,’ said Miro politely. ‘We will return with the necessary evidence.’
Miro turned to leave. ‘Thin ice,’ added Duffo as he turned to follow Miro.
‘Thanks for holding your ground,’ said Yassme as she smiled at Eugene.
‘These newcomers are clearly uneducated,’ replied Eugene, shaking his head. ‘The Downs Region is subtropical.’
Yassme wrapped her arms around Eugene and hugged him.
Tiberius, accompanied by Polly, had arrived at the warehouses; he wanted to speak to Colin. Colin was outside one of the larger warehouses where he was training a technician named Henders to replace him as resource manager.
‘Dear Colin,’ said Tiberius as he walked towards Colin and Henders. ‘Hard at work as usual, I see.’
‘There’s so much to do, friend,’ replied Colin. ‘This is the biggest reorganisation we’ve done in years.’
‘Which, of course, is absolutely necessary,’ said Tiberius, nodding.
‘I’d like you to meet the new resource manager Henders,’ said Colin joyfully as he patted Henders on the shoulder.
‘A reliable senior technician, I assume,’ remarked Tiberius.
Henders nodded enthusiastically.
‘Excellent!’ replied Tiberius, who turned to look at Colin. ‘I’m interested in the technology you salvaged from the other regions.’
‘We managed to accumulate plenty of great gadgets, friend,’ replied Colin as his eyes widened slightly. ‘Anything in particular you’re looking for?’
‘I’m looking for technology from Cellrebrum,’ said Tiberius. ‘I’ve been told it was the most advanced region.’
Jennifer, through the chip in Tiberius’ head, had informed him of the technology that was used in the rehabilitation centre.
‘We have a large section of this technology in that warehouse,’ said Colin as he pointed at a warehouse around a hundred metres away. ‘I’ll speak with you after lunch,’ he said as he turned to Henders, who nodded enthusiastically in response.
Colin led Tiberius and Polly into the warehouse and took him to the section where technology from Cellrebrum had been placed.
‘You managed to salvage quite a bit of good-looking tech,’ said Tiberius, sounding impressed.
‘Well, it was Vulay and her teams that did the hard work,’ said Colin. ‘I only organised and categorised it once it arrived here.’
‘She is in serious need of reform,’ said Tiberius as he became slightly angry.
‘Of course,’ said Colin, sounding nervous. ‘I was out of place mentioning her.’
‘That headset over there,’ said Tiberius as he nodded in the direction of a headset. ‘What does it do?’
‘It’s some type of virtual game, friend,’ replied Colin as he climbed up to grab it. ‘It just needs charging, and then it’ll work fine.’
As Colin was retrieving the headset, Jennifer was informing Tiberius about the headset and several other pieces of technology that he could see in the section.
‘Here you go,’ said Colin joyfully as he handed the headset to him. ‘Hours of fun gaming awaits you.’
‘I’d like you to fetch me that box of gadgets over there too,’ requested Tiberius in a polite tone as he pointed again.
‘Oh yes, I see it,’ said Colin as he reached up and grabbed the box.
Out of the corner of his eye, Tiberius thought he saw a child covered in blood. He instinctively looked away and then looked back, but she had gone.
‘Everything okay, friend?’ asked Colin as he approached Tiberius while holding the box.
‘Yes, of course,’ replied Tiberius in a slightly frustrated tone as he held out his hands to receive the box.
Colin handed the box to Tiberius, who was surprised by its weight.
‘You’re incredibly strong for your size,’ remarked Tiberius as he struggled to hold the box.
‘Great exercise routine,’ said Colin joyfully.
‘I see,’ replied Tiberius in a suspicious tone as he handed the box and headset to Polly.
A little later, Tiberius and Polly went to the trailer where Demadrian was being held. Demadrian was kept inside a cage, which gave him barely any room to move. Tiberius wanted Demadrian to be held under special detention for his attempt on his life. This also enabled him to have his way with Demadrian without needing to worry about Eugene and the Downs enforcers.
‘Oh my, this trailer stinks!’ exclaimed Tiberius as he opened the trailer door.
Demadrian stared angrily at Tiberius as he and Polly entered the trailer.
‘I’m deeply concerned about your wellbeing,’ said Tiberius as he squatted in front of Demadrian. ‘Being shut in the dark twenty-four seven must be horribly boring. The smell certainly doesn’t make great company.’
Demadrian continued to stare at Tiberius.
Tiberius stood up. ‘Let him out,’ said Tiberius to Polly.
Polly opened the cage. Demadrian slowly got to his feet. He was wincing in pain. His legs and back hurt after being kept in the cage for around a week. Just as Demadrian exited the cage, Polly struck him hard, causing him to fall to the ground.
‘Give him a good dose,’ said Tiberius as he handed Polly some syringes. ‘I want him out for a week.’
‘I’ll have to reinject him every day to do that,’ replied Polly.
‘Whatever works,’ sighed Tiberius as he stepped back from Demadrian. ‘I want him to catch up on some of those thousand years he missed.’
Polly gave Demadrian one full injection. She then placed the headset on his head. She switched it on.
‘You’re going to experience a hundred virtual years of hell,’ chuckled Tiberius as he watched Polly shove Demadrian back into the cage.
Sapien Loop: Worlds Collide
Sapien Loop: Worlds Collide is the final book in the Sapien Loop trilogy. It continues directly after the events of the second book. The world above and the world below merge into one world. The conflicts in the underground world are brought to the surface. The new ruling elite attempt to crush any resistance from above and below in an attempt to create a new global empire.
Currently, three books from the series have been published on Amazon; see the links below:
All individual chapters can be found on my @captainhive account.
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