Page 17 of Jump or Fall

Gordon - Four Years Earlier

T he motorbike Gordon had purchased was parked outside on the edge of Eight. It wouldn’t fit down the alleyways, so that’s where it had to stay until the day he was set to leave.

Buying it had been tricky since he had to get it from someone in another Division. Gordon had noticed another guy got away with roaming around if he concealed his face with a helmet. So he tried the same tactic. The seller had seemed wary at first, but hadn’t demanded he remove it.

Kimmie had told him that the way out was through an underground tunnel that came out near the south wall. He thought she was joking at first when she said he’d have to walk with the bike through the tunnels and then continue on foot once out until he reached the forest.

It also had to be at night.

The day had finally arrived, so he went through his supplies for the hundredth time.

Naxos was less than fifty miles away, but anything could happen out on the road.

Some posters in the forums spoke of being robbed by roving gangs, and others said a breed of tigers still lurked in the forest. That wasn’t even mentioning the insects and snakes.

His ear chimed.

“Gordon.”

“Hey, it’s Kim. I’m ready to meet at your bike. There’s a tunnel entrance close to where you parked it.”

“See you soon. ”

One last check. Everything was there—like the last two times he’d looked.

He grabbed his bag and did a quick sweep of the room. The chair was still wedged against the knife drawer.

Just move it back. They can’t jump out at you.

Gordon tentatively approached.

One might be sticking out and could cut him.

Don’t be fucking stupid.

With each step came images of somehow falling on one of the knives. The blades slicing into his skin and ripping through muscle and fat.

Sweat broke out on his forehead and he stopped.

Fuck it.

He turned on his heel and bolted out the door. Every step away from that drawer of horrors brought sweet relief.

The next tenant would figure it out.

Before he crossed the threshold out of Eight, he put his helmet on and flipped the visor up. Kimmie was leaning next to his bike, doing something on her tablet when he approached. She caught sight of him out of the corner of her eye and looked him up and down.

“What?”

She shrugged. “Ready?”

“Yeah.”

They walked the bike to the tunnel door across the street. The sun was low, and dark clouds covered the sky.

Please don’t rain on me.

Kimmie inserted a key, and the door clicked open. Inside, a long tunnel stretched out at the bottom of a set of stairs.

Without prompting, she grabbed the other side of the bike so it wouldn’t tumble downward.

He was already exhausted, and this was only the beginning of the journey. Another nightmare had woken him up early, and eating had been a struggle all day .

When they reached the bottom of the stairs, Kimmie stopped him. “I have something for you—well, a couple of somethings.”

She removed the gun holster around her hips and held it out to him, gun included. “You need this if you're going out there.”

“Thanks.” He fastened it around his hips.

Then she opened the bike’s storage compartment and withdrew the spy bird.

“My tech guy, Aaron, was able to wipe it. He figured out it has some imprinting feature, so it knows who its human is. We were able to pull the picture.” She smiled.

“When you turn it on, it’ll imprint on you, but he said no one would be able to get the picture.

Something about encryption—he said you’d get it. ”

He turned the bird over in his hands and looked into its eyes.

“I know you aren’t into watching people, but it could be useful. It works with a tablet.”

She was right—he wasn’t eager to spy on anyone, but it would definitely be useful.

“Why not keep it for the enforcers?”

“Chief Dax would steal it for a more important Division. Or himself.”

“Thanks, Kim.”

She waved him off, and they started the walk down the tunnel. It was long and moisture held heavy in the air.

Curiosity got the better of him. “Where is your family from?”

She smirked and he continued, “I've been a professional creep for years—profiling and watching. I’ve never seen anyone that looks like you and your mom. I’m assuming your sister looks similar.”

“My mom is Deluri. She came to Teichus legally with my dad, who was visiting her island for work. He was some big shot who got permission to travel. My sister and I were born here. Apparently, there are a bunch of us in Cygnus.”

“Learn something new every day.”

“Wanna know why we look like this?”

“I assume a dominant genetic mutation. ”

She rolled her eyes. “Well, obviously, that’s the real reason, Gordon. I’m talking legends and shit.”

He laughed. “Go on.”

“A long time ago, this guy was in love with a woman, and then she got sick. Her limbs started to rot away, but he didn’t want to lose her.

So, over time, he replaced her body parts with bronze.

Eventually, her hair fell out, so he decided to replace it with thin strands of electrum since that was closest to her real color.

Then he swapped her eyes with jade when they fell out.

Somehow he got her knocked up, and the kids came out looking like her. ”

“That is quite the origin story.”

“Yeah… Really, it’s just a story about a guy fucking a robot, but my mom’s proud to be a ‘descendant’ of the great Deyela. Obviously, he would’ve knocked her up before she was a hunk of metal, but that doesn’t stop anyone from obsessing over her.”

“How is your mom?”

Kim scrunched up her face. “Memory is worse, and she sleeps a lot. She forgets to eat and drink, which isn’t helping.”

“How long do you think she has?”

“Hard to say. Some people get these growths that kill them fast, and others just fade away. My sister is still in school, and I’m working, so it’s hard to watch her.”

Pain curled in his chest. Kimmie and her sister didn’t deserve to lose their parents to abandonment and poisoning.

It was evident that Kimmie’s rough demeanor came from necessity, but there was still something soft underneath.

She cared deeply about people even if it was hidden under expletives and eye rolls.

The tunnels gradually changed to be more natural rock and the air grew even cooler. Pushing the bike was making him sweat, but the faint air circulation kept him somewhat comfortable .

They reached a door that Kimmie unlocked, revealing a mostly empty room. A small table with two chairs and a map on the wall were the only furnishings.

The next door had no lock and opened roughly. The bike barely fit through but they were able to maneuver it to the side.

Another door was at the end of the room.

“That’s the last one,” Kimmie said. “It’s another tunnel that opens up to the outside. The path will hang right—just follow it along the wall. Don’t shine any lights until you’re in the trees.”

Holy shit. He was actually leaving.

Gordon had dreamed of traveling for so long, but it’d been so out of reach. Could he actually do this?

“Oh, one last goodbye something.”

She pulled a plastic dagger from her pocket and held it out hilt-first. He knew it was fake, but the sight of it still made his breath catch in his throat.

“I’m not being an asshole right now,” she said. “I’ve seen your mangled bread. You can buy it pre-sliced, you know. Anyway… My mom had this tactic when we were scared of something as kids. My sister was terrified of spiders, so she gave her toy spiders with little wigs.”

He took the fake dagger, trying to keep his hand steady. “Did it work?”

“She doesn’t keep them as pets or anything, but now she doesn’t scream her fucking head off every time one crawls by.”

Gordon slipped the dagger into his pack. “Thanks, Kim. For all your help.”

He stared at the door separating him from the outside world. From the corner of his eye, he caught Kimmie giving him another strange look.

“Why do you look at me like that?” he asked with a laugh.

“You’re nice to look at.” Her eyes slowly moved up to meet his.

Heat crept up his neck. He wasn’t expecting that, though he had a faint suspicion .

“Kim. You’re a nice girl, but I’m at least a decade older than you. I hope you don’t think I’ve led you on.”

“No,” she said, frustrated. “It was a long shot. Had to say something before you leave forever since we’ve got the guy’s picture now.”

Gordon held his arms open. The corner of her mouth curved up and she accepted the embrace.

“Find a guy your age who likes a good robot-fucking story.”

She broke off the hug and scoffed. “Guys my age don’t know what the fuck they’re doing.”

“They just need practice.” He winked.

Kim punched his arm, then opened the tunnel door. The sound of the water crashing against the rocks grew significantly louder.

He gathered what little courage he had left and stepped out into the darkness.

***

The road was rough, and his crotch was sore from the constant jostling and effort to stay balanced. Thick trees lined the road, their dense canopy making it feel like he was riding through a tunnel of leaves and branches.

Any exhaustion he’d felt earlier was a distant memory—slowing down wasn’t an option.

He had no intention of making himself an easy target for whatever lurked in the dark.

A few times, he could swear he heard things crashing through the brush, sending his heart into a frantic beat.

So far nothing had jumped out, but he was far from at ease.

When he finally broke free from the forest, it was like taking a breath of fresh air. The sky opened up above, freeing him from the suffocating confinement.

The road smoothed out with fewer roots, and he spotted the main highway ahead .

Hills stretched in the distance, but there was still no sign of the fork. He checked his map, but without a connection to the towers in Teichus, his location was a mystery.

Shit. Would his tablet even work in Naxos, or would he have to learn a whole new system?

Doubt crawled its way into his thoughts. He’d spent so many years learning how everything worked in Teichus. Naxos seemed more advanced. What if he couldn’t learn it?

Come on, it’s just tech. You can figure it out.

With the immediate sense of danger fading, the lack of sleep began to catch up to him. It was already around 1:00 a.m., but stopping to rest outside wasn’t an appealing option.

He had taken the right turn at the fork at least thirty minutes ago. A glowing sign had confirmed what his map had said—only twenty-five miles to Naxos.

He passed through a small town and nearly stopped, but pushed forward when he saw a sign saying Naxos was just another ten miles. His legs felt like they were about to fall off, and he had dozed off a couple times, but he refused to stop now.

The mountains were massive, though he had nothing to compare them to. There were no mountains near Teichus. The glow of the city was getting closer, and more roads branched off the main one.

He passed abandoned homes, their architecture vastly different from anything in Teichus. Unlike the tightly packed buildings he was used to, these houses stood alone, surrounded by overgrown vegetation.

Further along, occupied homes and small shops appeared. They looked relatively normal, but he was still amazed by the sheer amount of open space. There were no walls, so people could build wherever.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a dog following alongside him. It was keeping pace, meaning it was surprisingly fast for a dog.

Something about its gait seemed off—almost mechanical. They passed under a streetlight, so he took the chance to glance at it again .

Its eye flickered red.

How many kinds of spy animals were there?

Another dog appeared on his other side, also keeping an alarming pace. His pulse quickened and a chill went up his spine. They were definitely chasing him.

He abruptly turned down a side street, hoping to lose them, but two more dogs blocked the way, staring at him with eerie lifeless eyes.

Fuck.

With no other choice, he killed the engine.

He dismounted, groaning as he stretched out his stiff, aching muscles. The strain on just his back made him want to lie down flat.

Footsteps approached.

He looked around until he spotted a figure in a long coat striding toward him. The man stopped beside one of the dogs and scratched behind its ear. The animal remained motionless.

“Who are you?” Gordon asked.

The man smiled, stepping closer. The glow from a nearby light revealed bionic eyes and scars spiderwebbing across his cheeks.

“Good evening, Gordon.”