Short Story : Just When You Think You’ve Got It All Figured Out...
“Your family are dead.”
Carter stared blankly at the man and woman that stood in front of him. He lay in a hospital bed, hooked up to an IV, his right arm in plaster. He licked his dry, cracked lips before speaking.
“What did you say?”
The woman sat down on the edge of Carter’s bed. It was the man who had spoken before, and she glared at him as if he was a tactless idiot. Which he was.
“What we meant to say was,” the woman began, “that there was an accident.”
“An accident?” Carter repeated.
“Yes,” the woman smiled, “Can you remember anything about the accident?”
Carter shook his head.
The woman breathed in deeply, flaring her nostrils, then began to explain.
“My name is Agent Tracey, and this is my colleague Agent Reese,” she informed him, “Your wife was driving you and your two children to the shops when she seems to have lost control of the vehicle. She spun uncontrollably, and the car flipped. You were thrown clear of the vehicle—that’s how you broke your arm--but your wife and children were trapped inside.”
Agent Tracey paused.
“The vehicle caught fire—“
“Where are they?” Carter croaked, “Where are my family?”
“Didn’t I already cover this?” Agent Reese whispered to his colleague. Agent Tracey shushed him.
“The fire burnt quickly,” Agent Tracey explained, “they didn’t suffer. They didn’t survive.”
Carter shook his head, “No,” he wept, “You’re wrong.”
Agent Tracey stared at her feet, “We’re sorry for your loss.”
Carter sniffled, thinking about his wife and two children. What a horrible thing to wake up to, he thought to himself, and it was almost his birthday as well...
Carter furrowed his brow, and looked around the room. It didn’t look like hospital room he’d ever been in before; it was carpeted, for one thing, the walls were a lively creamy yellow colour rather than a dull hospital grey or white, but it was the calendar on the wall that caught his attention.
Today was his birthday.
Carter started to chuckle to himself, and the two agents stared at him as if he were mad.
“Why are you laughing?” Agent Reese asked.
“This is a prank, right?” he grinned, “For my fortieth birthday? You’re punking me and none of what you said is true!”
“I’m not sure what you mean.” Agent Tracey frowned.
Carter looked at Agent Tracey. She was kind of good looking, and she looked like she had a decent rack under her blazer.
“You’re a stripper, aren’t you?” Carter tried to sit up in his bed, “Did Steve organise this? That Steve. He’s such a prankster.”
Agent Tracey glared at Carter, standing up from the bed, “I am NOT a stripper,” she said harshly, “I’ll let that comment go seeing as how you have just lost your family, but you had better be careful what you say to me in the future.”
Carter threw back his sheets with his good left arm, swinging his legs over the side of the bed, “Something isn’t right here,” he said, “so wither you’re a stripper, or there’s something more going on here.”
He reached forward with his good left hand and grabbed the front of Agent Tracey’s blazer, pulling the buttons open. Before she could do anything, he ripped the front of her blouse open, expecting to see a pair of firm breasts in some lacy undies.
Instead he saw metal.
“What the f—“ he began before Agent Tracey gripped his wrist.
“Didn’t I tell you to be careful,” she grinned, and Carter could see lights behind her teeth.
“What are you?” he stammered, not understanding what was going on.
“We are robots,” Agent Tracey explained, “created by your government to ensure your co-operation.”
“My co-operation?” Carter blurted, “Why would you need my co-operation?”
“Your family were not killed in an accident,” Agent Reese spoke up, “They were killed in a terrorist attack.”
‘A what?” Carter shook his head, “What kind of craziness is this?”
“We’re trying to explain—“
“No!” Carter screamed, “No-one on Earth can create robots as realistic as you two. What the hell is going on? And you better tell me the truth this time.”
As he spoke, Agent’s Tracey and Reese suddenly seemed to wind down, like clockwork, and Carter began to panic. He jumped from the bed, cautiously approaching the two androids, and nudged them gently with a finger. They rocked side to side, but other than that they didn’t respond.
Collecting his thoughts, Carter raced to the doors to his hospital room and passed through them into a corridor.
But not just any corridor...
Carter stopped short, taking in his surroundings. He was in a metallic corridor, at least thirty feet high, flanked by railings that looked down over uncountable balconies. He swallowed nervously, looking down quickly, then continued to run. If this was a government facility, then the public were paying far too highly if this was the sort of facility they could afford, but Carter’s suspicions had already moved away from possible government conspiracies...
He’d seen enough episodes of Doctor Who to know that this was most likely an invasion by Cybermen!
He ran along the balcony walkway as fast as he could, hoping that he wasn’t too late to escape whatever had captured him. What if they wanted to turn him into a robot too! He shuddered at the thought.
Reaching the end of the balcony Carter was faced with a doorway, a control panel to the side of it. Having no idea how the control panel might work, Carter closed his eyes and swung his plaster cast into the panel, hoping for the best. Some sparks flew from the panel, there was a loud hiss, and the doors slowly started to open.
Beyond the doorway, Carter could see three pulsating blobs sat in front of a giant window. Out the window he could see the Earth, which meant only one thing...
He was in space!
He gasped uncontrollably, catching the attention of the three pulsating blobs.
“It is awake,” the first blob said, surprisingly in English.
“It must have destroyed the robots,” the second blob noted.
“We must destroy him!” the third concluded, and in terror Carter ran from the room, the three pulsating blobs following him.
Filled with panic, Carter looked for somewhere he could hide, or perhaps even escape from the three alien blobs. Realising that the situation he was in was almost impossible to escape from, Carter leaned against a wall to catch his breath.
As he did so, he accidentally activated a panel that opened up a doorway in the wall. As it slowly opened, a computerized voice spoke.
“Escape pods activated.” It said.
Suspecting this was his only chance to get home, Carter leapt through the doorway and strapped himself into a chair as the doorway closed around him.
He was lunged into darkness.
Everything was silent. All he could hear was the sound of his own breathing as he waited for something to happen.
He waited.
And waited.
Then, just when he thought he’d waited enough, an immense white light burst into his field of vision, almost blinding him. He lifted his shattered cast to shield his eyes.
“Who’s there?” he asked nervously.
Carter heard a voice clearing its throat. A loud, booming voice.
“I,” the voice said, “am God!”
“God?” Carter said, “Seriously?”
“Yes,” God said, “And I am here to tell you that you have been chosen to lead your people into the Promised Land. The Earth is doomed, and only you can save your people from their inevitable destruction.”
“Well,” Carter smiled, putting on a random pair of dark glasses, “that’s a turn up for the books.”
Suddenly everything went black. Carter disappeared, God disappeared, and instead they were replaced by scrolling words.
“Well,” Peter shook his head, “that was terrible.”
“I know,” Dave said, “Sometimes these movies filled with mind games are nothing but a waste of time.”
“I tell you one thing,” Peter grinned, “that’s the last time I watch anything directed by The Wachowskis!”
Originally Posted 3/8/2015
Result - 3rd Place
Carter stared blankly at the man and woman that stood in front of him. He lay in a hospital bed, hooked up to an IV, his right arm in plaster. He licked his dry, cracked lips before speaking.
“What did you say?”
The woman sat down on the edge of Carter’s bed. It was the man who had spoken before, and she glared at him as if he was a tactless idiot. Which he was.
“What we meant to say was,” the woman began, “that there was an accident.”
“An accident?” Carter repeated.
“Yes,” the woman smiled, “Can you remember anything about the accident?”
Carter shook his head.
The woman breathed in deeply, flaring her nostrils, then began to explain.
“My name is Agent Tracey, and this is my colleague Agent Reese,” she informed him, “Your wife was driving you and your two children to the shops when she seems to have lost control of the vehicle. She spun uncontrollably, and the car flipped. You were thrown clear of the vehicle—that’s how you broke your arm--but your wife and children were trapped inside.”
Agent Tracey paused.
“The vehicle caught fire—“
“Where are they?” Carter croaked, “Where are my family?”
“Didn’t I already cover this?” Agent Reese whispered to his colleague. Agent Tracey shushed him.
“The fire burnt quickly,” Agent Tracey explained, “they didn’t suffer. They didn’t survive.”
Carter shook his head, “No,” he wept, “You’re wrong.”
Agent Tracey stared at her feet, “We’re sorry for your loss.”
Carter sniffled, thinking about his wife and two children. What a horrible thing to wake up to, he thought to himself, and it was almost his birthday as well...
Carter furrowed his brow, and looked around the room. It didn’t look like hospital room he’d ever been in before; it was carpeted, for one thing, the walls were a lively creamy yellow colour rather than a dull hospital grey or white, but it was the calendar on the wall that caught his attention.
Today was his birthday.
Carter started to chuckle to himself, and the two agents stared at him as if he were mad.
“Why are you laughing?” Agent Reese asked.
“This is a prank, right?” he grinned, “For my fortieth birthday? You’re punking me and none of what you said is true!”
“I’m not sure what you mean.” Agent Tracey frowned.
Carter looked at Agent Tracey. She was kind of good looking, and she looked like she had a decent rack under her blazer.
“You’re a stripper, aren’t you?” Carter tried to sit up in his bed, “Did Steve organise this? That Steve. He’s such a prankster.”
Agent Tracey glared at Carter, standing up from the bed, “I am NOT a stripper,” she said harshly, “I’ll let that comment go seeing as how you have just lost your family, but you had better be careful what you say to me in the future.”
Carter threw back his sheets with his good left arm, swinging his legs over the side of the bed, “Something isn’t right here,” he said, “so wither you’re a stripper, or there’s something more going on here.”
He reached forward with his good left hand and grabbed the front of Agent Tracey’s blazer, pulling the buttons open. Before she could do anything, he ripped the front of her blouse open, expecting to see a pair of firm breasts in some lacy undies.
Instead he saw metal.
“What the f—“ he began before Agent Tracey gripped his wrist.
“Didn’t I tell you to be careful,” she grinned, and Carter could see lights behind her teeth.
“What are you?” he stammered, not understanding what was going on.
“We are robots,” Agent Tracey explained, “created by your government to ensure your co-operation.”
“My co-operation?” Carter blurted, “Why would you need my co-operation?”
“Your family were not killed in an accident,” Agent Reese spoke up, “They were killed in a terrorist attack.”
‘A what?” Carter shook his head, “What kind of craziness is this?”
“We’re trying to explain—“
“No!” Carter screamed, “No-one on Earth can create robots as realistic as you two. What the hell is going on? And you better tell me the truth this time.”
As he spoke, Agent’s Tracey and Reese suddenly seemed to wind down, like clockwork, and Carter began to panic. He jumped from the bed, cautiously approaching the two androids, and nudged them gently with a finger. They rocked side to side, but other than that they didn’t respond.
Collecting his thoughts, Carter raced to the doors to his hospital room and passed through them into a corridor.
But not just any corridor...
Carter stopped short, taking in his surroundings. He was in a metallic corridor, at least thirty feet high, flanked by railings that looked down over uncountable balconies. He swallowed nervously, looking down quickly, then continued to run. If this was a government facility, then the public were paying far too highly if this was the sort of facility they could afford, but Carter’s suspicions had already moved away from possible government conspiracies...
He’d seen enough episodes of Doctor Who to know that this was most likely an invasion by Cybermen!
He ran along the balcony walkway as fast as he could, hoping that he wasn’t too late to escape whatever had captured him. What if they wanted to turn him into a robot too! He shuddered at the thought.
Reaching the end of the balcony Carter was faced with a doorway, a control panel to the side of it. Having no idea how the control panel might work, Carter closed his eyes and swung his plaster cast into the panel, hoping for the best. Some sparks flew from the panel, there was a loud hiss, and the doors slowly started to open.
Beyond the doorway, Carter could see three pulsating blobs sat in front of a giant window. Out the window he could see the Earth, which meant only one thing...
He was in space!
He gasped uncontrollably, catching the attention of the three pulsating blobs.
“It is awake,” the first blob said, surprisingly in English.
“It must have destroyed the robots,” the second blob noted.
“We must destroy him!” the third concluded, and in terror Carter ran from the room, the three pulsating blobs following him.
Filled with panic, Carter looked for somewhere he could hide, or perhaps even escape from the three alien blobs. Realising that the situation he was in was almost impossible to escape from, Carter leaned against a wall to catch his breath.
As he did so, he accidentally activated a panel that opened up a doorway in the wall. As it slowly opened, a computerized voice spoke.
“Escape pods activated.” It said.
Suspecting this was his only chance to get home, Carter leapt through the doorway and strapped himself into a chair as the doorway closed around him.
He was lunged into darkness.
Everything was silent. All he could hear was the sound of his own breathing as he waited for something to happen.
He waited.
And waited.
Then, just when he thought he’d waited enough, an immense white light burst into his field of vision, almost blinding him. He lifted his shattered cast to shield his eyes.
“Who’s there?” he asked nervously.
Carter heard a voice clearing its throat. A loud, booming voice.
“I,” the voice said, “am God!”
“God?” Carter said, “Seriously?”
“Yes,” God said, “And I am here to tell you that you have been chosen to lead your people into the Promised Land. The Earth is doomed, and only you can save your people from their inevitable destruction.”
“Well,” Carter smiled, putting on a random pair of dark glasses, “that’s a turn up for the books.”
Suddenly everything went black. Carter disappeared, God disappeared, and instead they were replaced by scrolling words.
“Well,” Peter shook his head, “that was terrible.”
“I know,” Dave said, “Sometimes these movies filled with mind games are nothing but a waste of time.”
“I tell you one thing,” Peter grinned, “that’s the last time I watch anything directed by The Wachowskis!”
Originally Posted 3/8/2015
Result - 3rd Place
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