Prodigy Eternal (book 2)

Chapter Twenty-Five

The global election of 2119 was a big deal since it was the first one following Maxim Morrison’s unorthodox departure. To avoid the obvious problem of vote tampering, each person used an online voting system that was attached to their brains. Each vote would have a signature code that was impossible to hack. In addition to this, voters were also required to pass a test before being eligible to vote. This was a way to avoid the ignorant voter problem that was notorious in democracies. Participation wasn’t mandatory, but nearly everyone took part in the process. Voting lasted for a seventy-two hour period with the results shown in real time. Polls had been conducted throughout the weeks leading up to the election. So far, they showed the ‘none of the above’ category leading by a wide margin, and all other candidates were more or less tied.

It had been a miserable few days for Alex as she had been examined invasively in the most uncomfortable of settings. She would often be strapped down for several hours and couldn’t even move enough to scratch an itch. Being blindfolded the entire time made the situation even worse. Her brain eventually began to compensate for the lack of visual stimuli and as a result, her other senses were heightened. Through the shuffling feet and whispers, she determined that there were at least four people monitoring her.

A team of unidentified personnel hooked her up to various machines and uploaded a patch to her brain in an attempt to study how her brain worked. She had no idea what it was, but over time she noticed her brain activity slowly beginning to return to its normal ways. She figured she had downloaded the eternity hack that she and Aris had developed.

Now in her cell, pacing back and forth like a caged animal, Alex began to plot an escape plan. She could hear her mother's voice in her head telling her, ‘Never give up, there's always a way out.’ She had been in this type of situation before, but didn’t want to wait around for the cavalry to show up.

As a result of her new brain condition, she was thinking much more clearly. Analyzing the routines, she realized that every day at the same time she would receive a meal, then an hour later three men would come into her cell and apprehend her. Resistance was futile.

On the fourth day, Alex left her tray of food untouched as she lay sprawled out in the corner of her cell. Right on schedule, the three men entered, holding a sack to be placed over her head and restraints for her arms and legs. Confused as to what was wrong with Alex, and wary that she was baiting them into a trap, they approached with caution. When they became near enough to grab her, they saw blood trickling out from her nose. One of the men rolled her onto her back and saw Alex’s lifeless eyes staring back at him. He put his hand on her neck to check her pulse, and that’s when she made her move.

Grabbing the man’s wrist, Alex swivelled her hips around and used her legs to lock him in a triangle choke. The technique involved Alex’s legs wrapping around his neck and arm and constricting the blood flow to his brain. While she sunk in the choke tighter, she used her free hand to remove the stun gun attached to the man’s belt. When the second man came close enough, she zapped him on the leg with the same 25,000 volts she had experienced earlier. The second man dropped immediately and began convulsing. By now, the man ensnared in her legs was choked unconscious. Kicking him off, she rose to her feet. There was one man left.

With her piercing eyes locked onto the last soldier, Alex wiped the blood from her nose and then ran after him. Instead of engaging Alex, the man turned around and ran out the door. Sprinting down the long corridor with vengeance, Alex eventually caught up to him at about the midway point. She grabbed him by the back of his uniform and spun him around. Before he had a chance to react, Alex had already delivered a sharp knee to his liver, dropping him like a sack of bricks. Alex crouched over the incapacitated soldier, jamming the stun gun in his throat.

“Where are you keeping my friends?” she demanded with an intense rage.

“I…I’ll take you to them,” he stuttered in fear. “P… please don’t hurt me.”

“Get up.”

The man stood up and walked a few feet in front of Alex. It was the first chance she had to really study the inside of the building. It wasn’t clear where she was, but it looked like it could either be an old prison or some kind of factory. The interior was drab and had exposed pipes running along the ceiling. Looking around, Alex did not see any cameras, but figured she was being watched. Together, they walked down the hall until they reached a solid metal door.

“They’re in here,” the terrified man revealed.

Alex grabbed the frail soldier by the uniform and shoved the stun gun in his lower back. “There better not be any surprises behind this door,” Alex threatened.

“Your friends are in here, I promise.”

“Open it,” Alex demanded. Her eyes scanned in both directions down the long corridor.

Raising his trembling hand toward the pad, a blue light scanned his sweaty palm.

ACCESS DENIED

“What’s the hold up?” Alex asked impatiently.

“It must be the sweat from my hands,” he shuddered in terror.

“Try again,” Alex demanded.

After wiping his hands on the breast of his coat, he tried the scan one more time. Again, the same message appeared. Alex was losing patience, but figured something was up.

“Who are you working for?”

“He calls himself The Fox… none of us have ever met him.”

“Why are you doing this?”

“I’m sorry, Alex… I know who you are and I really didn’t want to do this to you, but we had no choice.”

Just then a loud voice echoed down the hallway. “Well done, Ms. Gray. I see you’re adapting well to the eternity hack. You seem to be getting smarter.”

“Where are you keeping my friends?” Alex shouted in no particular direction.

“Your friends are behind that door, but I cannot let you in just yet. I still need you.”

“Go to hell!”

“There won’t be an afterlife for me, Ms. Gray, thanks to your eternity hack. But unfortunately for you, I’ll need to keep you here a little longer.”

The hallways filled with soldiers dressed like ninjas, far too many for Alex to defeat on her own. With nowhere to run, Alex was forced to surrender.