The War In His Mind

Chapter 39

The buildings barraged by missiles had crumbled. From the command center the city looked like a mixture of parks, houses, and debris. It was striking to Abraham how sudden it all happened. One moment the city had been a place of tranquility, but moments later it was a warzone. There were the constant skirmishes near the border, but this was something different. This was a massacre.

Next to him, Natasha mended to those with injuries. Sections of the command tower itself became another mobile hospital. The field hospital across the river was full and there were too many people to be left on the streets. She had many assistants yet there never seemed to be enough. Abraham admired her. She was braver than he was. There was a striking difference between her desire to rush in and help others versus his immediate reaction to strike back against an oppressor. It was fitting, he thought, that they were a couple. They balanced each other and formed a cohesive team. Could one survive without the other? Possibly, but not for long. It took maturity to realize that, and in thinking that, Abraham felt proud that he came to that conclusion. Though he had mostly gotten over the fact he wasn't a direct clone, there were small moments where Abraham found pride in his originality.

It was strange standing still through the chaos and doing nothing. It was best, he determined, to hide until the attack was over. He had gathered as many men and women on the street into the tower to protect them from the assault. For everything there was a time and a place. A time to retreat and a time to strike back. There would be a time for retaliation, but that moment was a time of patience and preparation.

Natasha, no longer attending to any particular patient, stood up. She took a piece of paper out of her pocket and handed it to Abraham. "These names...they're in fighting condition."

Abraham merely nodded. "Maybe physically, but mentally?"

Natasha shook her head. "Is anyone ever mentally prepared?"

Abraham moved through the crowd sitting in the tower. He looked out of the window towards Isaiah's tower. At the top was a figure covered in showers. It seemed to be Isiah, but Abraham couldn't be sure. It hadn't dawned on him that the tycoon was missing. "Where is he?" Abraham whispered out loud.

***

Abraham found himself surrounded by books and loose leaf papers loosely thrown across the floor of Isaiah's tower. The place was trashed, most likely from the ground shaking as missiles hit nearby buildings. The building it self had no direct damage, but that didn't make Abraham feel any easier about taking the elevator to the top. He carried his pistol and an assault rifle as personal insurance in case something were to go wrong. Looters were common in abandoned buildings- it was best to be alert for suspicious activity.

The penthouse was clean and organized, a direct contrast to the ground entrance. On the right was a grand bookcase full of books behind a sliding glass door. On the left was a strange set up of what seemed to be computers. They were connected in a way that Abraham had never seen before. There were wires connecting them together as if they were train stations connecting a country together. Abraham reached his hand out to touch one of the consoles.

"Stop!" A sharp, sudden voice interrupted him. Abraham pointed his pistol at the direction of the voice.

"You don't want to mess with that..." Isaiah said, peering out of the shadows. "It's not friendly for the new user."

Abraham quickly put his pistol in its holster. "What is it?"

"Does it matter?"

A cloud appeared in the air. Inside of the cloud was a vision of another version of Wonder City. Abraham, taken off guard, stepped back from it in fear. "What the hell?"

"It's a portal- don't get too close."

"A portal?" Abraham asked.

"Terrifying— isn't it?"

"What am I looking at?"

Isaiah paused. He exhaled his breath with a heavy sigh. "Another version of Wonder City..." The cloud dissolved into nothing and the portal disappeared. "It's an alternate world, pulled from those computers. It's called a router."

Abraham pointed accusingly at him. "And where did it come from?"

Isaiah turned away from Abraham. He bowed his head and sighed deeply. His poor posture and apprehensiveness to speak confused Abraham. "Does it matter anymore?"

Abraham came close to Isaiah. "Would you kindly tell me what's going on?" His dry sarcasm was masked by his hushed tone and subtle aggression.

"I've been..." Isaiah rubbed his eyes, "...less than honest with you..."

Abraham shoved an index finger in his face. "Explain. Now."

"O'Neil. He got to me. Put a bomb in head. Told me that if I didn't cooperate he'd..."

"What've you done?"

"He gave me this..." Isaiah pointed to the router. "...In exchange for three hundred warheads."

"You gave our enemy weapons? Armed his with enough explosives to destroy the city?" Abraham said. His face felt warm and his heart jumped rapidly against his ribs.

"That attack was just a start. A test fire...there's more to come."

Abraham pulled out his pistol and placed it against his temple. "Where's the failsafe on them?"

Isaiah shook his head. "I'm a dead man, I have no reason to lie to you..."

"There isn't one?"

Isaiah narrowly moved his head from side to side. His blotchy pale skin made Abraham feel sick.

"But..." Isaiah said. "There is one last chance...one thing I can do..."

Abraham shoved the end of the pistol into Isaiah's jaw, pointing towards his brain. "Do it." He released Isaiah, who walked to this command center. In the vast array of keys and triggers there was a sealed off button. Isaiah opened the latch and pulled the lever to unlock it.

"Forgive me...my own greed has killed me. Don't be like me, Abraham. Let my death be a factor that leads to a greater Wonder City."

He placed his hand over the button. "There's a tower in the shape of an angel. It is full of ordinance. Destroy it. And while you're at it...kill O'Neil for me."

He pressed the button and missiles flew out of a silo in the building toward the train station. On impact they destroyed the door separating Uptown from Downtown. Those behind them followed into the city below. Several loud booms were heard.

Isaiah pulled a pistol out of a compartment in the command desk and placed it against his skull.

"What are you doing?" Abraham said as he grabbed his arm. For such a large man, he was strong and physically capable of holding his own. It was impossible to keep the gun away from Isaiah.

"It is better to die a freeman than to live as a slave." Isaiah said. A loud pop of the gun and the sudden loosening of Isaiah's grip forced Abraham into a state of shock. The blood pooled out of Isaiah's head and splattered onto Abraham's shirt.

Abraham looked into the city and saw the citizens pointing at the train station. He glanced down again at Isaiah's body. It was limp on the ground. "I'm sorry...I wish I could have stopped this."

Though there was a gaping wound in the head, there was no visible explosive nor evidence that it went off. It was a lie. Isaiah had been fooled.