The Island Project: A Thriller (17 page)

CHAPTER 41

THE JUNGLE

16 OCTOBER, 4:30 A.M.

The windshield wiper blades strained to keep up with the sheets of rainfall. Detective Lee flew around a corner and hit a large pothole. He corrected his steering and safely veered the jeep back onto the dirt road.

He looked up through his window— still no sign of it.

Lee had been following a helicopter for the past few minutes. He had spotted it flying overhead while he was on the highway. By keeping it within sight, he had been able to tail it before it abruptly cut into the forest. As he stopped to relocate the helicopter, he realized that he was directly in front of a road turn off. His headlights were pointing at a driveway of some kind.

Lee entered the turn off and followed a narrow road back about a mile through the dense jungle. As he wound along the path he noticed small blue lights along the road. Upon further inspection he realized he was driving along a fence of some kind—it seemed to continue for quite a distance.

Lee focused his eyes through the windshield as the wiper blades flapped back and forth. He shifted gears and followed the path to see where it led.

PART 3

DESTROY

THE CURRENT DEVELOPING course of cloud data technology will bring about a new “rebirthing” or Renaissance in our historical timeline. It will open up a new world of accessibility far beyond our current understanding of networking and communicating. There will be a revival among the arts, marketing, commerce, communication, consumerism, and entrepreneurship. The possibilities are as infinite as the space in which the cloud lives.

-Dr. Rupert Perry

The blend between actual reality and VA-managed reality will evolve and develop into a standard of living. Eventually, Virtual Agents will be so in control of our daily lives that humans will cease to recall a time where decisions were made based entirely on ones own principles.

-Unknown

CHAPTER 42

THE DEN

16 OCTOBER, 4:45 A.M.

Rick Danner, Kelly Adler and Tom Bennett made their way through the opening in the skylight of the den. The second time through proved to be easier than the first.

They had changed plans of going through the lab after they heard Dr. Perry’s chopper descending onto the roof above. One by one, they used the ladder and scaffolding to exit the den and escape through the open panel. Despite the downpour outside, the group made easy work of the opening and climbed out safely onto the roof.

Dr. Perry’s helicopter landed on the far side of the building, and by the time the group made their way over, Perry had exited the chopper and was making his way down the steps.

He saw them approaching.

“Rick? Is that you?” Perry shielded his eyes and shouted through the rain. He looked stunned to see Danner.

“It’s me alright. We gotta talk.”

Dr. Perry peered suspiciously over Danner’s shoulder, eyeing Kelly and Bennett standing behind him. “Who the hell is
that
?” he asked.

Danner glanced behind him. “Long story—they’re with me, though. Can we talk in the chopper?”

Dr. Perry was clearly uneasy about the presence of Kelly and Bennett. He continued staring at them until he finally broke eye contact and focused back on Danner. “Let’s talk inside,” he said and motioned toward the stairwell. He began walking forward when Danner reached his arm out and stopped him. Perry shot him a look of confusion.

“Braden’s here. He’s out of control. He released two more juggernauts and killed one of my men.”

“He
what
?” Perry asked, staring wild-eyed at Danner in unbelief. “Certainly not. It can’t be.”

Perry’s blue eyes bore into Danner for a moment while he contemplated what to say. Then he shifted his gaze to the ground. He stood there thinking while the rain dropped off the black frames of his eyeglasses. A moment later, Perry turned around and ascended the steps of the helipad. Danner, Rick and Kelly followed behind him. Perry opened the door of the helicopter, and they all climbed inside.

The interior of the helicopter was actually quite roomy. It had leather seats and a mini bar in the middle. Dr. Perry reached into a drawer and pulled out a bottle of single malt scotch. The drawer beneath held some glasses, which he withdrew and offered to the three of them. Danner accepted. Kelly and Bennett politely declined. Before he finished pouring, Danner started in.

“Dr. Perry, meet Kelly and Tom. Tom’s a photographer and Kelly is a wildlife biologist. They accidentally came across the headquarters today while they were in the reserve and somehow got mixed up into Braden’s science project.”

Perry looked at them and nodded, but didn’t produce his hand. “Rick, would you step outside with me? I’d prefer to discuss business matters apart from your guests here.”

“We don’t have time, Perry. This needs to happen right now,” Danner said.

Dr. Perry looked over at Kelly and Bennett. He seemed uncomfortable with them around—like he was weighing his words carefully.

Danner was becoming impatient. “Listen, Perry. We can cut the confidential B.S.”

He pointed at Kelly and Bennett. “They witnessed the murder. Anything we need to talk about can be discussed in front of them.”

“You say Braden released two more juggernauts?” asked Perry.

“Yes. He also shot and killed Tegan, one of the men I had brought in to retrieve Lorry. Then he locked us all up in the containments.”

“I’m sorry to hear that—about your man, Rick.” Perry replied, seemingly out of obligation. He didn’t sound particularly concerned with anything other than the juggernauts. “Where is Braden now?” Perry asked, taking a sip.

“He’s inside the building somewhere. Last we saw, he was running off to find Tom, after Tom pulled a Houdini in the den.”

“He’s got a gun you say?”

“Yes, a Glock 9MM,” replied Danner.

Perry finished off his scotch and placed his glass on top of the mini fridge. “Ok. I’m going in to speak with him. He’ll listen to me. The important thing is that we stay together. If Braden is really this fragile, we’ll need to approach him with extreme caution.”

Dr. Perry fidgeted with his empty glass. Kelly could tell he was ready to leave the helicopter. “On top of the murder, he drugged me and locked us all up inside those factions,” Kelly added.

“Oh, my dear. I’m extremely sorry to hear that. I assure you that Braden will pay for this,” Perry said displaying an award-winning look of concern. “Now, let’s go put this to rest, shall we?”

“Perry, I’d be careful. Braden is not right. He’s controlling those things on his own and sending them out on killing missions. They’re in there right now patrolling the grounds—probably right behind that door,” Danner warned.

“I understand. Leave Braden to me. I’m sure I can reason with him.” Perry reached for the door and pushed it open. He looked outside. “Nearly six ‘o’ clock and the sun isn’t to be seen yet…
bloody storm clouds
.” He shook his head. “Rick, can you please escort your friends to my office for safekeeping?”  

Danner glanced over at Kelly and Bennett and shook his head. Danner was annoyed with Perry’s complacency of the situation. He wasn’t getting the point.

“Perry, he’s going to
kill
you if you go in there,” Danner said.

Perry stopped halfway out the door and looked over at Danner. He forced a smile and held it for a moment. “Not if I have a say in it.” Then he exited the helicopter.

Kelly looked at Danner. “Something’s not right.”

“Yeah,
he
ain’t. Come on, let’s get you out of here,” Danner said. They exited the helicopter and made their way down the landing pad. Dr. Perry opened the access door to the building and they all walked down the stairwell. Once at the bottom, they followed Dr. Perry as he entered the building.

The hallway was empty. Bennett scanned around for signs of Braden. They started walking down the hall, when suddenly a shape appeared twenty yards in front of them. Something or someone stepped out from the doorway and stood in the middle of the hall. Due to the poor lighting inside, it was hard to determine what was standing there.  Then a light flicked on, illuminating the hallway and causing the group to shield their eyes.

It was Braden.

He was standing there holding a gun in his right hand. Two juggernauts stepped out from the doorway and flanked him on either side. They crouched next to him like wild dogs waiting for the command to attack.

“There he is!” Danner yelled.

Dr. Perry walked straight at Braden, not slowing down. “Braden!” he said angrily.

Danner followed behind Perry.

Braden tossed a gun into the air and Perry quickly grabbed it with his left hand. He immediately turned around and fixed the gun on Danner. It happened quick…Danner had no time to react.

Danner stopped in the hallway and held his arms out—stopping Kelly and Bennett too. “What are you
doing
?”
Perry?
Danner sounded as if he was going to have a total meltdown.
“My god, has everybody lost it?”

“Sorry Rick. But I can’t have this interfere with my plans…whether or not I agree with how things were done here,” Perry said matter-of-factly.

Danner ran his hands through his short hair. He crouched down with his elbows resting on his knees.

“Rick, let’s go. You’re coming with us,” Perry said in a demanding voice.

“What about them?” Danner said pointing behind him.

Perry didn’t answer. Braden stood behind him—his eyes filled with a look of anticipation. The sides of his mouth curved upward into a sinister smile as he drummed his fingertips along the heads of the juggernauts, producing a sort of metallic clicking sound.

“What about them!”
Danner yelled in a furious voice. Both Perry and Braden remained silent—not acknowledging him at all.

“Ok. I get it.” Danner looked back at Kelly and Bennett. He stared Bennett in the eyes as if he was trying to tell him something. Then he whispered to him. “Go, now. You can make it out from up there. I’ll hold them off.” He turned around and faced Perry and Braden.

“Go!
Now!”

Bennett grabbed Kelly’s hand and they ran back down the hallway. They reached the stairwell and began climbing the stairs. Braden released the juggernauts with a commanding roar and they came tearing down the hallway toward Bennett and Kelly. Danner positioned himself into an attacking stance and thrust his right foot powerfully toward the leading juggernaut. He caught it with the bottom of his boot, square in its side, sending it flying into the wall. The robot hit the wall hard, smashing the drywall and nearly sending it into the other room. The robot clambered and attempted to regain it’s footing but it was considerably off balance. It tumbled to the ground and took a moment to get back up. Meanwhile, the other juggernaut was well on its way down the hallway. It reached the door and burst up the stairs, quickly gaining ground on Kelly and Bennett.

CHAPTER 43

CERTA FACILITY ROOFTOP

16 OCTOBER, 6:00 A.M.

Bennett shoved open the door as he and Kelly stepped out into the morning air. Daylight was just beginning to arrive and they could see more clearly outside.

The rain still fell.

“This way!” Bennett shouted. He was leading Kelly up to the helicopter pad.

They climbed the steps quickly and reached the helicopter. Bennett opened the door and led Kelly inside. Bennett hopped into the cockpit.

“Tom, can you fly this?” Kelly asked.

“It’s been a while…not like we have a lot of options though.” He flicked a few levers and placed the black padded headset over his ears. The engine whirred to life. The blades slowly started rotating and picking up speed. “Hang on!” Bennett yelled back to Kelly.

Bennett was familiar with flying light helicopters. He hadn’t operated one in over eight years, but he had gained some valuable time flying medical supplies back and forth between villages while in Africa.

He pressed on the cyclic and the helicopter lurched slightly. He slowly eased on the throttle again. This time the helicopter pitched sideways rather violently. The cabin shook and the glass cracked on the left side. Kelly was knocked sideways into the door.

What was happening?
Bennett knew it wasn’t the throttle. He looked outside.

He soon realized what had caused the chopper to pitch.

The robots were slamming into the helicopter.

The chopper was slammed again from the side. It skidded and chirped across the pad with each impact. Bennett looked out through the foggy, rain-drenched glass. He could see the juggernauts circling the helicopter outside. They were taking turns rushing into the side of the chopper. They attacked again, this time simultaneously. The impact was intense. It sent the helicopter skipping sideways to within a few feet of the edge of the pad. Kelly could see down the side of the building to the trees below.

“Tom!”
she yelled.

The fear was real. Kelly hung on for her life.

The impact of the blow was interfering with the orientation controls. Bennett couldn’t keep it balanced enough to lift off. He pressed the cyclic forward. The helicopter finally rose and gained a few feet of altitude.

Finally. It was working.

They were nearly airborne when they were hit again. This time both juggernauts crashed in through the window. The strong front legs shot through the glass and thrashed around just inches from Kelly’s face. The resulting blow knocked the helicopter completely out of control. Bennett could feel the weight of the frame tipping to the right. He tried to correct it, but it was too late. The entire frame tilted slowly onto its right legs—the blades still spinning.

“Kelly, hold on! We’re going over,” he yelled. The helicopter’s body creaked as it shifted weight. Kelly could feel the rain coming in through the broken window, dripping onto her face. The juggernauts scampered away from the falling chopper and moved clear of the large steel blades.

For a moment, Bennett thought the helicopter might even itself out and come back down. He let off the throttle to find balance. But the feeling of dread continued as it tipped more and more on its side— and closer to the edge where the only thing between them and the ground was a fifty-foot drop. It all seemed to happen dreadfully slow. Kelly even had time to tighten her seatbelt and wrap her arms in the seat belt straps next to her.

Neither Bennett nor Kelly said a thing. They were both in shock as to what was happening.

The helicopter groaned loudly as the left legs surfaced upright for a moment then slowly gained speed and whooshed over the side, sending the helicopter end over end down the face of the building like a kids play toy.

It slammed into the ground below with a loud
CRUNCH
, splitting the tail clean off the frame and exploding glass in all directions. The circling blades cracked and split apart as the body met with the ground. It spun in a half circle before it came to a stop on its side.

The shattered metal bird lay still. It didn’t move, it just lay smoking and crackling while the relentless rain poured down upon it.

There was no movement inside either. No sign of life from the two passengers inside.