Free Rising: Parables From The Apocalypse - Dystopian Fiction by Norman Christof Page A

didn’t have a choice.  There was too much screaming, too much blood, and too much damn noise.  Christa can take care of herself.  She’s not as helpless as she looked.”
    Leekasha punched the mattress.  “Shit. Shit. Shit.  Your right. I shouldn’t have left her back there.  She wouldn’t have done that to me.  She would have figured something out.  She’s smart that way.”
    “It was a friggin’ mess back there.  You did the best you could.  The paramedics will take care of your friend.  They’re not just going to let her die or anything.  They’ll want to talk with her.”
    “Right.  I know.”  Leekasha smiled at Jed.  “Look at you being all calm and collective.  Waking up from the big sleep just minutes ago, and already your making more sense than I am.  I don’t know what happened to her, and I freaked out.  We could still use some help though.  How well do you know your fellow inmates?”
    “Know?  I’ve been doped out for years according to you.  I can’t even remember what I did yesterday.”
    “Don’t worry.  It comes back.  Give it time.  All the horrible details come back, and you’ll wish they never did.”
    “Great.  I can hardly wait.”
    “If you saw the other inmates again, would you like … hate … trust any of them?  Try to think what it was like just before I helped you across the bridge.”
    “The bridge?”  Jed thought for a second.  “Yea I remember a bridge.  You fixed the bridge.  I remember that.  It was foggy, but I remember that.”  Jed closed his eyes for a few seconds thinking, then opened them.  “Maybe, I might remember some of them.”
    “Good, you work on that.  I have a plan.”
     
    The sound of the guards office door closing echoed through the block, followed by the sound of military boots moving down the block.
     
     

Locked Up
    “You hear that?”  Jed asked.
    “Of course, I hear that.  Those boots are loud as hell.  I guess they’re not trying to sneak up on us are they?”  Leekasha answered.
    “They know we’re trapped.  There’s no way out, except back where we came from.”
    Leekasha stood up from the bunk.  “You remember what you did back there with the guard?  The way you had him shoot the other one.”
    “I didn’t try to make him shoot the other guard.  I just remember you helping me, and getting me out of that horror.  Then, I saw them coming up behind you.  I just wanted them to stop.  I didn’t specifically tell him to shoot, I just didn’t want them to hurt you.  It was you I was thinking about.  The other guard knew what his partner was going to do.  He decided to shoot, not me.”
    “Good, so you remember.  That’s good.  Pretty sloppy the way you handled it, and more than a little lucky but good enough.  You’ll get better at it.”
    “Better? At what?”
    “You have abilities that humans don’t.”
    Jed looked worried. “I am human … what do you mean abilities?  What are you saying?”
    Leekasha put her hands on his shoulders.  “OK, look, we don’t have time for a history lesson right now.  Let’s just say your different.  You’re kinda improved in ways you may not remember.”
    “That’s crazy, I …”
    Leekasha gripped his shoulders tighter. “Shh!  Stop.  Just listen to me.  Right now we need to deal with those guards coming down the block.  They’re gonna be here fast.  I need you to think about me just like you did back in your cell.  These guys coming are pissed.  One of their colleagues is dead, and we had something to do with that.”
    Jed covered his mouth with his hand.
    Leekasha continued.  “That’s good you feel bad about it, believe me that’s a really good thing.  Not everybody reacts that way.  Still, we need to deal with them.  I’m going to need your help.  I can manage two maybe three of them at a time. If there’s more of them, you’re going to have to help.  Got it?”
    “Yea, yes.  I can do that,”  Jed said