The Pandora Index (Older work)

Everything Happens for a Reason (1)

Madison Sleet

Daniel and I drove through the bustling New Detroit streets in silence for most of the ride. I hated talking about the breakout. It made me feel so...useless. There was no way Mister Sleet would ever fully trust me after it.

I can never forget that day, it's burned into my memory.

...

I remember the sound as the helicopter soared over Old Detroit. As usual, the Monolith towered over the cold, desolate ruins. It wasn't an especially tall structure compared to the buildings in mega-cities like New Detroit or New York, but since it was the only thing standing out here it seemed gargantuan.

The helicopter landed in the leveled, dusty lot in front of Pandora. No roads or proper buildings were reconstructed in Old Detroit because the ground was too unstable. The only stable area coincidentally happened to be the very center, and that was were Pandora now sat, a pristine black dome in the middle of a sea of destruction.

This week Mister Sleet was having a private meeting with the Council, so I was in command of the facility. I went through my daily routine. I had a long argument with Agent Williams about weather or not Craclars -the only specialty rounds currently legal in the US- were really more effective than regular bullets. I admit, I am a bit old-fashioned, I even use an old .44 revolver of all things! After a while I started to patrol the complex.

After a good thirty minutes of wandering the pristine white halls, I had stopped at Patient Twenty-six's large, circular cell. I had noticed that "Midas" had a wider smirk than usual today. Midas wasn't my favorite inmate, in fact, I despised him. He was a spoiled, egotistic punk who used his powers to change things into metal in selfish ways. That wasn't why I didn't like him though, I hated the way he smiled at me, it was like he had just beaten me in some kind of game.

He suddenly began chuckling uncontrollably.

"Whats so funny?" I asked.

He grinned up at me even wider. He said, "I'll send you a post card once I get to Vegas, Madi..." He winked at me.

It suddenly felt as if the room's air had a weight to it, what was he up to? Could he just be bullshitting me again?

I tried to confront him about it, "What are you-"

The lights went out...and I heard Midas' restraints snap open. And then the red emergency lights flashed on.

It happened so fast, I heard a scream to my right and saw a worker's terrified expression frozen in a casing of metal. Midas had turned her skin into iron. He gave me that grin that he new I hated, I returned this smile though, I finally had a reason to shoot the bastard. I reached for my holstered revolver and took aim but he was faster than I thought, and had grabbed my wrist before I could take the shot. I would have ended up like that worker if I wasn't wearing gloves. He had turned my glove to metal though. I was at a serious disadvantage now. I swatted at him with my now useless pistol, he dodged, quickly snatched my radio and gave me a hard punch to the side of the head, I fell to the floor in a daze. I looked up to see that he was now holding a syringe with a clear liquid in it. Suddenly, he jerked my arm up and I felt a sting in my wrist.

Midas' face had serious expression "I'm not allowed to kill you right now, but this should keep you out of trouble for a while."

My vision started to blur and I suddenly felt weak. The last thing I remember seeing was Midas running towards the door as I began to lose consciousness.

...

I don't know how long I was unconscious but it was long enough for most abnormals to escape. I sat up groggily and made my way out the door to the main hall. Nothing would have prepared me for what I saw then. The first thing that hit me was the smell of burning flesh. I counted six dead guards, charred, and two half-melted security androids. This was their last stand. At least they had fought well, they had managed to take down three patients I had recognized from the energy manipulators' cell block. I took a pistol off one of the mutilated bodies in my left hand and made my way through the dark, bloody corridor.