The pain continued coursing through my body, but I pushed through it as my eyes stayed fixed to the road. I could feel the vehicle shaking around me as I drove. Having a misaligned wheel was slowing my progress a bit, but I knew I could make it. My heartbeat rang through my ears as the blood covering my body slowly hardened. Each small movement of my head would cause my nearly severed ear to flop up and down, sending a new wave of pain through me.

  As the adrenaline was slowly fading, I could feel any fear inside me warping into anger. It was anger at those awful people chasing me, anger at myself for leading my friends into a trap, anger at having to leave them back there, and anger at whoever had left me on my own in the first place. Gripping the wheel harder, I could feel the faux leather cracking under my hands. Suddenly, the inside of the car let up with red and blue lights, snapping me out of my trance. Looking into the rearview mirror, I saw the police car directly behind me.

  I looked down at the GPS. There was only a few miles to go until my exit. With a sigh, I considered the idea of continuing to keep going, maybe even jumping from the car and running off. This car couldn’t go any faster without falling apart. With another glance into the mirror, I could see the police car practically touching my bumper. Knowing I’d already been seen by the security cameras at the facility, I decided there was no point in hiding anymore. Someone had to have reviewed the footage.

  Coming to a stop on the side of the highway, I turned the car off, taking a few deep breaths. My gaze darted to the side mirror as I watched the officer approach. Even if I did want to run, it was too far of a walk to Gav’s house in my condition. Instinct was telling me to turn the car on and book it, but with the car in this state, the officer would catch up to me quickly. Besides, if I drove to Gav’s, I’d have a trail of them behind me, even if I did make it.

  A knock on the window brought me back to reality. Giving it one more thought, I decided to simply wing it. I reached over and rolled the window down, glaring directly at the man who’d approached my window.

  “What’re you doin’, drivin’ like…” He started, bringing his flashlight up to my face.

  After he locked eyes with me, however, he froze. While he was staring at me with a stunned expression, I looked down, noticing a body camera on his chest and a gun in its holster. A few cars passed as he stared at each other. I had no idea what was going through his head, much less what he planned to do. What I did know, though, was my time was limited, and I couldn’t spend it dealing with him.

  “You…you’re that thing they’re looking for…” He said, still staring at me.

  “Go back to your car and drive away.” I said in a quiet, firm voice.

  More than anything, I just wanted him to be on his way and leave me alone. Clearly, he hadn’t expected me to speak. The officer’s eyes widened and his hand started reaching down for his gun.

  I shook my head. “They don’t pay you enough to deal with this. Trust me. Just leave and–”

  As I expected, he suddenly reached down to his holster. He was fast, but I was faster. Leaping out of the window, I grabbed his arm as he pulled the gun free. The man was heavy and stronger than I expected. He stayed upright for a moment as I kept my grip on his arm. With a firm push off the ground, I managed to get the officer off balance, pushing him in front of Gav’s car and making him lose the grip on the gun in his hand. It clattered against the road as I blinked.

  Spying my chance, I quickly snatched it from the ground, turning away from the officer long enough to see if anyone else had stopped. Luckily, the drivers didn’t seem to notice the scuffle.

  “I told you,” I said loudly, over my shoulder, “you should have just–”

  Before I could finish, I heard a loud whoosh, then a sudden sting as something whacked into my side. I stumbled, turning around to see the officer holding a large baton. He ran toward me, ready to swing again, but I was able to catch it. Even though I didn’t want to hurt this man, it was important for me to keep moving. I couldn’t stop, not when I was this close. The officer was in my way, and he didn’t know he was outmatched, so I decided to warn him with a demonstration.

  I yanked the baton clean out of his hand, holding his gun in the other. He stepped back on instinct, realizing he was now disarmed. Still glaring at him, I held both weapons in front of me, then tossed them into the woods. I didn’t need them. A one on one fight with no weapons wouldn’t be challenging, even in my current state. Seeing me throw his tools away must have given him enough confidence to lunge at me.

  Expecting the oncoming tackle, and knowing I was much faster than he was, I swiftly slid underneath him, punching up and square into his chest. The officer sailed off the side of the embankment and down the small hill, rolling toward the woods. I watched him tumble all the way to the bottom of the embankment. Wheezing, he tried to stand, but he couldn’t seem to do so. Panic filled his voice as I slowly approached.

  “P-Please, I…I’m sorry, I…” He said, falling back to the ground again.

  Something smacked into my side. I jumped away in shock, finding Gav’s car rolling down the embankment. Perhaps it was all the exhaustion from the day, but the idea of pulling the emergency brake never crossed my mind until it was too late. The car slowly went over the edge, tumbling down sideways. In a moment of clarity, I saw it heading straight for the officer I’d thrown.

  Seeing an opening, I leapt forward, right over the car. The moment I landed next to him, I grabbed the man by the collar and pulled him back from the car, tossing him a little farther into the woods as the car continued rolling down the hill. Luckily, I had just enough time to dodge out of the way as well, the metal vehicle giving a loud thud against the ground next to me. Landing on my back, I rested there, catching my breath as I thought about my next move.

  The officer sounded fine. At the very least, I could hear him breathing next to me. Hopefully, he’d learned his lesson and wouldn’t try anything stupid. After a minute, he started muttering under his breath.

  “Please don’t kill me…I…I wasn’t supposed to engage…I just…I just…”

  I rolled my eyes. I had no intention of hurting him…not any further, anyway.

  “You know,” I said, sitting up, palms pressed against the ground for balance as I looked at him, “you could have just walked away, but you wouldn’t listen.”

  Reaching toward him as he continued catching his breath, I yanked the body camera off of his chest. He didn’t put up a fight. Now it must have been clear to him: I was stronger than he was. I almost felt sorry for him, laying there as he wheezed, trying to catch his breath despite being exhausted and covered in dirt. The officer almost looked on the verge of tears.

  “I’m sorry, I’m sorry…” He kept muttering under his breath.

  I stood, brushing some of the mud off my clothing.

  “Hey.” I said authoritatively, causing him to stop and look at me, “I never wanted to hurt you. I wanted you to leave and just let me go on my way, but you had to push it. You had to fight me. Why?”

  “I…I shouldn’t have…I’m sorry, I…” He said, seemingly unable to find a reason.

  What little patience I had was running thin. Just as I was about to leave, I thought of an answer I needed.

  “How did you know about me?” I asked him.

  He looked nervous, taking a moment to reply. I quickly flashed him a look. Now wasn’t the time to play games with me. Fortunately for the officer, he got the hint.

  “They said…they said there was an animal driving a car somewhere nearby. They didn’t give us any details. I thought…I thought it was a monkey that escaped from a zoo, or…or some kids playing a prank.” He answered.

  I nodded and turned away, giving an answer of my own. “I didn’t want to hurt you.” My gaze drifted to the ground. “I wish you’d just left me alone and we could have agreed this never happened.”

  The officer didn’t respond, so we each stayed there in silence for a moment. I turned back around, facing him again.

  “I didn’t…I didn’t want any of this.” I told him, trying to justify myself to this complete stranger. “I don’t want to hurt or scare people. I didn’t ask for any of this. I just want to go home…is that too much to ask?” I sat down, leaning against a tree just opposite of him, head in my hands.

  I didn’t want to look at him anymore. I felt ashamed of what had happened, what I’d done.

  “Did you…” He started to ask.

  I looked at him and he paused. Slowly, I nodded, seeing the curiosity in his eyes.

  “Did you escape from somewhere?”

  Shaking my head, I pointed to the sky. “I came from up there, somewhere…I don’t know where, exactly. I was too young to remember anything before I came here. I didn’t even know I was different until…well…a few months ago. Now everything’s different and I just wish I could go home.”

  Normally, I’d be a crying mess, thinking about it all. Instead, I felt stoic, as if none of my thoughts had the powerful grip on me they usually would. I figured the unique feeling might be shock, but regardless, it was odd for me, being able to talk about it without feeling overwhelmed.

  The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

  “How do you plan on doing that?” He asked.

  The officer’s demeanor had completely changed. Now he seemed to understand I didn’t want to be a threat to him or anyone else. If anything, he sounded curious.

  I sighed. “Honestly? I’m not entirely sure…but I think I’m getting close to getting some answers.” I instinctively reached into my pocket, digits tracing the crystal in it.

  We both sat in silence for another minute before I stood. “I, um…I really should get going. Thanks for…” I paused. “...talking to me, I guess.”

  “I hope you find what you’re looking for.” He responded sincerely.

  “Where’s the key?” I asked, moving closer to him.

  “Wha–”

  “The key to your car. Is it still in it?” I asked.

  “It’s still in there, but…wherever you’re going, you’ll be found. Police cars have GPS trackers in them.” He answered.

  I paused, eyebrows raised, surprised he was willing to be so honest. “Why would you tell me that?”

  “To be honest, I don’t know what to think anymore.” He said, lifting himself into a sitting position with a strained grunt. “Ever since that whole incident a few months back and the fallout, I don’t know who to trust. What I do know…is that I should trust my gut more than whatever these people tell me,” he gestured to his radio, “and my gut says that you’re a good kid who needs some help. That’s what I’m going to believe so I can sleep well tonight.”

  I looked at him, skeptical at the sudden change of heart. “What incident?” I asked, head tilted to the side a little.

  “The massacre. Didn’t you hear about it?” He asked, rubbing his left shoulder.

  Oh. That.

  “I saw…something about it. I don’t know.” I shrugged.

  “Ah…well, I suppose you were busy with whatever you were doin’ at that time. It’s been crazy. I live in Nevada, but after all those drug dealers died in that massacre, a lot of stuff came out. It looked like the entire police department here in Colorado was corrupted. It went all the way to the top. Nearly three quarters of the police force is waiting for trials now. So…” He shrugged. “...they called people like me to come fill in the gaps.”

  It wasn’t really important to my mission, but I did remember reading quite a bit of information about it. All I knew was what had been publicly disclosed, but surely it must have gone deeper.

  “It seems like we have a new dispatcher every week now. More and more information keeps coming in and more and more people are let go from the force. One thing I’ve learned is that, whoever’s in charge around here, they won’t be for long. They probably did something and just haven’t been caught yet. I don’t trust them. Nobody does. They may as well just fire all of ‘em at this point and get it over with.”

  I nodded, trying to remember more of the details of the newspaper clipping from when I was traveling on my own to Oliver’s house.

  “My point is,” he continued, “I’ve learned not to trust people based on their position, but on my gut, and my gut says I should help you out. If they’re looking for you, they’re probably the ones who are in the wrong. I can drive you to wherever you’re going and forget all of this ever happened. I’ll just…come up with some sort of story for what happened to me here.”

  I considered the offer for a minute. Given my condition, walking there would be a bad idea. Taking the officer’s car meant they would find it, and beyond that problem, I wouldn’t be able to drive it anyway. Without the modifications for the gas and brake, driving would be impossible. Looking at Gav’s car, now flipped upside down in the ditch, I gave a soft sigh.

  “Okay. I, um…I appreciate it. Thank you.” I said, reaching a hand out to help him to his feet.

  The man smiled, taking my hand. He stumbled as he stood, but I caught his arm with my free hand, helping him stay balanced before we walked back up the embankment. Once we were back by the road, I took one last look at Gav’s car. I felt bad it had been destroyed, but I also knew there was no sense dwelling on it right now. I’d find a way to make it up to him…but more than anything, I just hoped he was okay.

  Once I slid into the passenger seat, I closed the door behind me. The police officer did the same, giving a small groan of pain, but trying to keep a straight face. Although I’d done everything I could to avoid hurting him, he’d clearly still gotten a bit injured. I looked at his computer, suspended on the spot between the two seats. Gav’s address was already marked.

  He’d probably pulled up the license plate information when he stopped me.

  “This where you’re goin’?” The man asked me while tapping on the screen.

  I nodded. “I, uh…was going to have you drop me off a mile or two away, but I guess that won’t do any good, huh?”

  He shook his head. “Probably not, no. LIke I said, I can buy you some time, but you can’t spend too long there before they’ll start searchin’ your way.” He gestured to the computer. “All this is logged.”

  Putting the car into drive, we started to pull away from the side of the road. The officer grunted a bit as we hit a bump. I didn’t know how badly he was hurt, but he was doing his best to hide it.

  “I don’t…” I started, then cleared my throat. “I don’t really know why I’m trusting you right now.” I said as we picked up speed, heading for Gav’s house.

  Well, besides not really having any other choice.

  “I think, hmm…” the man thought for a moment before he continued, “...I think you’re just trusting your gut, same as me. I mean, I’ve always thought good people can recognize other good people. We have a good feeling on who we can and can’t trust. Heck, that’s a big part of my job. It’s something I think about everyday out here. You seem genuine, like a good kid who’s in a tough spot and needs a bit of help. I didn’t become an officer to just follow rules and intimidate people, even if some people think that’s what officers do. I chose this job because I wanted to help people, and you’re someone in need of help.” He gave a soft sigh. “I’m, uh…I’m sorry about earlier. I panicked and I shouldn’t have done that. It was my fault. I’m sorry I didn’t take a moment to listen to you.”

  I have a small smile. It was good to hear that admission from him.

  “I’m sorry I hurt you. I didn’t want to, I just–”

  He stopped me. “Not a problem.” He said, turning and smiling at me for a moment before turning back to the road.

  Even though I kept up my guard, he seemed like a nice, genuine person. Then again, I probably wasn’t the best judge of character, since I’d met so few people. As we pulled off for the exit for Gav’s house, I took out my phone to text Oliver.

  “Oliver, I need you to pick me up at Gav’s house. Something happened, I can’t explain it here. I have to turn off my phone for a while, so I won’t be able to respond. Please just come to Gav’s house when you get this message.”

  ***

  I waved goodbye to the police officer from the front door; he gave a quick flash of his brights before pulling out of the driveway. I felt like I could trust him, but he was right: I should get everything done as quickly as I could and get out before it was too late. Not knowing what to expect, I cautiously entered the house. There shouldn’t be anyone home, but there was no way to truly know.

  The lights were off. Everything was quiet. I gently closed the door behind me to stop it from squeaking, silently listening for any sort of noise. Since I’d arrived here, there’d always been some sort of commotion: Gav downstairs in the basement playing music all the time, Emily going back and forth trying to think of a plan, Oliver trying to get her to focus without bouncing from one idea to the next. Now, with none of it here, it made the silence all the more deafening.

  Nodding to myself in confirmation, I quickly ran to the basement, pulling out the crystal from my pocket and looking at our machine. With no one to turn it off, it felt far more intimidating. Still, Oliver would arrive in about an hour. No matter what happened, he’d be able to turn off the machine and bring me back to the basement.

  After turning on the overhead light, I shook the mouse on Gav’s computer to awaken it. Having seen him go through the program time and again, I knew exactly how to navigate it myself. He’d built a simple interface to activate certain memories and functions. I quickly found my way to the memory we’d been looking at many, many times: the final memory before…whatever happened to Lifeboat 7.

  The multi LED panel just to my left glowed to life, filled mostly with red dots and a small handful of green. From what we’d learned, I knew most–if not all–of the panel had to be turned green if we wanted to translate that memory. Turning my focus on the screen once again, I opened all the rudimentary settings Gav and put in place. Most of them were about memory timings, namely caches and intensity settings. We’d changed them quite a bit when we’d started the project, but after finding a set which worked well, we’d left them where they still were now. I did the same, ignoring them and scrolling down to find the “Guardrails” setting. Here it was: the safety protocol which would cut everything off if certain thoughts entered my mind.

  I clicked the checkbox to remove them, then jumped a bit as a large warning message appeared.

  WARNING: YOU ARE ABOUT TO DEACTIVATE GUARDRAILS

  A large ‘Cancel’ button was on the left and a tiny ‘Continue’ on the right. I clicked the button on the right and another message appeared.

  GUARDRAILS DEACTIVATED. TURN THIS BACK ON BEFORE TESTING ANYTHING WITH TESS.

  It was strange to see my name in the warning message, but given this program was solely for this occasion, it made sense. Besides, no one else would be using it. I got on the table next to the box, feeling the nervousness rising inside of me.

  “Okay, plan, plan…what’s the plan?” I asked myself, staring at the box. “Right, so…he shows up in my memories, and it’s usually when something is bad. Usually it’s when things were slowed down and I had time to think…so…if I slow it down again…”

  I reached into the box, turning the knob I remembered Gav using in order to slow everything. Once it was on the same setting he’d had it previously, I stopped.

  “That should do it. Now…” I imagined the figment’s form and face as I thought out loud. “...you tend to show up when things are stressful. Are you trying to show me something…something we haven’t seen?”

  With a deep breath, I took the shard out of my pocket, pulling off the top and closing my eyes before pressing my finger to the top of it. I thought about the trip down to the facility, our conversation in the car, waiting for the others, going inside, and then the fire. The fire…it was all too easy to remember the fear I’d felt overtaking me before I could snap myself out of it…hearing Gav and Emily from the other side of the flames…and the fear of having to run and leave them behind. Opening my eyes, I looked down at my trembling hands, watching the shard change from the dull, blue glow back to the normal, clear hue it often was.

  “There, that should give you enough.” I said as if he could hear me.

  I placed the shard into the dock on the box. It instantly came to life, bringing up the symbol with the three circles on the screen, followed soon by the menus. Even without knowing the language, I scrolled through the folders and found the newest one with practiced ease. At the very bottom of the last folder, sure enough, the new memory I’d just added was sitting there waiting for me.

  I selected it, turned to the computer, and clicked ‘play’. The box started emitting the normal sound. With the memory now playing, I knew I would react to it the moment that flashlight was activated. Laying back on the bed, I stared up at the light, listening to the box humming next to me for a moment. My body shuddered slightly, but I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

  “No,” I said out loud, “I can do this. I can do this.”

  I reached for the light, closing my eyes before flicking the switch to the ‘on’ position. After lowering my hand, I felt my hearts race as I took one last moment to get ready…and then, I opened my eyes.