11 Violence was out of the question; the only thing left to do was reason with him.

Says:

Violence was out of the question; the only thing left to do was reason with him. The pulp of a man bound to the wooden chair was Christof Fleischer, a Nazi spy sent to kill the president. Of course, Nazis had disbanded 5 years ago, but there have always been the few lingering followers trying to hold onto what they had. The U.S. had been trying to stomp out the remains for years, but only ever got the small fries. It didn’t help much to take out a few ants here, when there was an anthill somewhere else.

Christof was the answer to this problem. Their little knowledge of the faction’s sources was a hindrance, but Christof was quite a bit higher on the food chain compared to their other catches. They had been beating Christof for nearly an hour and nothing had come of it; he actually seemed to be enjoying it. The masochist Nazi scum.

“We’ve been pretty rough with ya here son. What says we lay off you for a bit?” the officer in charge said. “I think we can be a bit more reasonable, eh?”

Christof just smiled a bloody smile and let out a laugh.

“I think we’ll get along quite nicely if we can just get some of that information we’ve been asking about. We can offer you freedom, protection, anything. You name it we’ll give it. All we need to know is who you report to and where we might find them.”

Christof laughed even harder at this.

“What is it you want son?” the officer pushed on.

To this Christof responded, “You Americans are all the same. You think that I matter? Do you think that my life is important? I am just a part of the bigger picture, and I will gladly give my life for my beliefs.”

As he finished this last sentence something slipped out from under his tongue and he swallowed it. Within seconds he was dead and drool began to seep from his mouth. The officer couldn’t help but wonder why he had put up with all of the torture he had, but as the body was removed he felt like he was missing something.

10 This wasn’t the first time a woman had thrown red wine on him.

Says:

This wasn’t the first time a woman had thrown red wine on him. It was however the first time it was still in the bottle. When the bottle hit him and shattered he stumbled back against a table and braced himself. He wiped away the alcohol from his stinging eyes, and could barely make out a figure as he squinted through the restaurant.

“Dumb broad…” he mumbled in a drunken slur.

“I heard that” said the figure.

The blur began to run towards him, first sprinting, then cart wheeling, and landing a back handspring right in front of him. His eyes were still stinging as he hiccupped and muttered something about being a show off.

This man, Jonah by name, was known for being a failing womanizer. He pushed and pushed, harassed and insulted, and did whatever he could to try and get what he wanted. So rarely did he ever get it. This night he had been set up by a friend on a blind date with a lady named Carlitta. Little did he know that she was a hired assassin.

Carlitta pulled dual pistols from the holsters under her dress and pressed them against Jonah’s neck, cocking one then the other, then said calmly “You know, I’m getting a fairly high price for you.”

“You a hooker?”

“No, you idiot. I’m an assassin. I’ve been hired by a girl you might have known: Charlotte.”

Jonah paused for a while, looking confused then responded “Never heard of her.”

“Well, that explains why she wants you dead. You dated her for over a month, not less than a year ago,” and without giving him a chance to explain, she blew his brains out the roof of his head. Grasping a cloth napkin from the table, Carlitta scrubbed gently at the brain stains on her new dress.

“Men.”

09 It didn’t make sense--one shot fired, three dead bodies.

Says:

It didn’t make sense--one shot fired, three dead bodies. Detective Lawrence Roth walked over to the three lumped corpses, and lifted the arm of the body that lay on top. He let it drop with a soft thud as it hit back up against the pile. He walked over to the window sill and examined the dust on it. Finally he went over to the wall and examined the hole in the tacky, rotting motel wallpaper.

“One shot, and three dead. Here’s how it went down,” said Roth smoothly as the men around him reached for pen and paper and began furiously writing. “The two men are common thugs, both work for the mafia. They were hired by the man on bottom for protection. Turns out our smothered friend here is the crime boss known simply as ‘Rosco’, and he owed a few favors he couldn’t return. His business associates weren’t too happy for this and made several attempts on his life. These men were hired to do anything for him, including die for him. Their instructions were to take the bullet. Little did they know that their enemies were packing a high powered rifle with armor piercing bullets. Actually only one bullet. The bullet entered through the first two men before striking our friend here on the bottom.”

“Why would these men throw away their lives just for a boss who deserved what was coming to him?” chimed a young intern in the crowd.

“Ah, well, they were very well compensated. I am fairly certain that their families already have the money in their accounts. I knew this man here in the middle. He was a stool pigeon for us, and he wanted out of the business. I assume this man on top is his brother he spoke of. Looks like they got what they wanted."

08 The stick had finally stopped spinning. It pointed left, to the trail leading into the woods.

Says:

The stick had finally stopped spinning. It pointed left, to the trail leading into the woods.

“I knew it was that one,” mumbled Jebidiah, following Oakley down the path.

“Ha! Even if you did guess it, you had a one in three chance,” Oakley retorted, looking back at him over his shoulder.

Jebidiah lowered his head and grumbled as he walked down the trail. His incoherent ramblings lasted for nearly a minute before he looked at Oakley and spoke out once more, “We’re not even supposed to use magic!”

Oakley stopped in his tracks, still facing away from Jebidiah, paused for a moment. “Magic? You are complaining of me using magic?”

“Father said that we mustn’t—you know it’s forbidden in these parts.”

“So you think that I’m going to stop? Think Jeb. Would we have gotten this far if it weren’t for magic? Would you still be walking if it wasn’t for magic?”

“That’s not fair Oakley.”

Oakley paused again, and then continued: “I’m sick of your whining Jebidiah. Always so concerned of getting caught. Except when it’s in your favor.”

“Oh come on, you know what I was getting--”

Jebidiah was cut short as he fell crippled to the ground. Oakley had removed the spell, and was walking down the path still.

“You aren’t going to leave me here are you?” shouted Jebidiah weakly.

Oakley didn’t answer but kept walking as a smile crept on his face. He pulled his hood over his head, and relaxed a bit. Finally some peace and quiet.

07 By the time he went outside, ash was already coating the ground.

Says:

By the time he went outside, ash was already coating the ground. It was then he knew that it would be a merry Christmas after all. Since the enslavement of the human race, the weather hadn’t been quite the same as it once was. Sure there were replacements, with the acid rain instead of plain rain, and smog in place of fog, but they weren’t the same. This didn’t concern Harry 234 though, who had grown up in this new world.

Seeing the white flakes drift in slow motion and begin coating the pavement, he reminisced of Christmas past. There had been so few times that it “snowed” on Christmas day. Sure factories exploded regularly, but it wasn’t often that it happened nearby, nor at the right time.

He ran outside and stuck out his tongue, catching a still smoldering flake on it. His face curled up and he winced. It was supposed to be good luck to catch the flakes still glowing hot. He touched his tongue and smiled, looking up into the grey sky.

He saw in the distance a small red dot, moving towards them. Harry 234 soon recognized it to be the leader’s blimp. So He was coming to our sector! This was a much better “present” than he had expected from his government. As he began to walk towards the stadium, where he was sure the meeting would be held, he kept smiling. This was indeed going to be a merry Christmas after all.

06 Now’s not a time for subtlety, Jim thought, noticing the remainder of his arm hanging limply at his side.

Says:

Now’s not a time for subtlety, Jim thought, noticing the remainder of his arm hanging limply at his side. With this thought in mind, he grabbed the shotgun from the table and kicked open the front door.

They were what appeared to be giant bugs, a sort of beetle, hundreds of them, all waiting and all hungry. These were not what he was trained for, but he’d have to make do. He’d learned that already.

He braced the shotgun against his right shoulder and fired into the crowd. This caused chaos within the mob of creatures unknown, but gave Jim a window of opportunity to move forward. He used his teeth along with his working arm to reload and fired again, giving him room to keep on forward. The insects circled around him in a black swarm, but none dared to approach him. They saw what the gun he held could do. As he was reloading with his teeth once more, he heard a low pitch thunderous roar. Their queen. With this roar, the beetles moved in closer, given newfound confidence that their queen was coming. Jim shot again, and gained a few more feet into the crowd.

The roar came again and the beetles closed in further. Every now and then a beetle would approach him, but retreat as he pointed his gun at them. They gathered closer and closer, realizing their numbers against his. Several bit into his legs, and two flew into the air and grabbed his good arm. He dropped the shotgun and a flurry of black crawled over him, and overcame him. Consciousness slipped away from him, and he fell into the black.

He awoke to the noise of the queen, but this time much louder. As he regained his senses, he realized he was bound by some sort of grey slime and that he appeared to be underground. The roaring came once more, and he could hear the queen getting closer through the dark tunnels. It was at this point that he realized he’d left the stove on at the cabin.

05 That night marked the first time she saw the rabbit.

Says:

That night marked the first time she saw the rabbit. Alice had been waiting for this moment for years and did not waste a second before dashing after the small white creature. She ran as fast as she could, gaining very little ground on it, but not giving the slightest hint at giving up. In the moonlight the rabbit almost glowed, making it easy to see where it lept; Alice used this to her favor as she pushed onward through the forest.

Finally the rabbit took a final jump and disappeared. Alice looked around and eventually came upon a small hole. She kneeled down and reached in with her right hand, feeling the dirt between her fingernails. Not satisfied, she reached further and her hand met cold tile and she couldn't help but grin. This was indeed the rabbit she had sought.

She lowered herself onto her stomach, not caring wether she dirtied her dress or not, and began to worm herself inwards. She moved in blindly with her arms in front of her, guiding her through the slender tunnel. Soon enough her entire body was underground, and she could see a dim light further down. Noticing the intricate wallpaper that lined what seemed less like a tunnel but more a rather small hallway, she kept herself moving, motivated by what she knew loomed ahead. She found it easier as the tunnel began to expand as she went further and was comforted by the light she approached slowly. She moved to crawling on all fours as the hallway grew even more and by the time she reached the door she was walking hunched over.

She tapped lightly on the door and it was thrust open inward by some unseen force, and light flooded the hallway that Alice hunched over in. She walked in and was happy to find she could stand. She looked around and saw the rabbit wired up, and guessed it was most likely recharging.

She continued looking around, what appeared to be a laboratory, wires and monitors every where. The thing that made it interesting though, was the odd art and electronics. Playing cards and a chess set lay on the table, and mirrors adorned nearly every wall. She knew that Charlie had an interest in Alice in Wonderland, it was that that caught her interest in him when they met. Perhaps that was his interest in her, a young blonde girl who shared the same name. This had never crossed her mind when she met him first three years ago, but only now after seeing just how deep the rabbit hole really did go.

Charlie watched from a surveillance monitor and smiled. Pressing a button, he sealed the exits and walked down the stairs to her.

04 She said ‘I love you’ in the only way she knew how--she pulled the trigger.

Says:

She said ‘I love you’ in the only way she knew how--she pulled the trigger. Two shots went off with a bang and I fell to my knees clutching my heart. I looked at my blood soaked hand, and then at her. The most beautiful dame I’d ever known and I never knew her name.

“Sorry Kiddo,” she said as she whipped away a tear, “you know you had it coming for you.”

My body weakens and my vision blurs as I crumple to the floor like a rag doll. I lifted my head and squinted as the pitter patter of rain hits my open wounds. The most beautiful dame I’d ever known walked over to me, nestled her foot up against my throat, and cocked the gun once more.

Still in tears, she pulled out a cigarette with her free hand and lit up. I watched as the smoke curled upward to the heavens and waited. She was right. I knew I had it coming.

“Dammit girl,” I managed to stutter after spitting out blood, “Do you kill every single one?”

“Just the ones I like.”

BANG!

03 He powered down the hand

Says:

He powered down the hand. The servos slowly whirred their way to a halt and the device collapsed against the table. This generation of the model was much more lifelike than the others. The flesh that covered it was textured in such a way that, to the touch, was indistinguishable from the real thing. On top of this the movements were surprisingly convincing.

“The final piece,” said Victor as he picked up his creation and walked to the center of the room.

He walked anxiously towards what appeared to be a young man’s body lying naked on the table. He took the man’s arm and fitted the hand into its open socket, twisting it until it would budge no further.

Victor restlessly paced as the final coding was uploaded. He knew what the secret was to perfection. Man was not perfect. Man could never be perfect, but with time and effort his creations could. Victor was ready to prove this.

He had learned from the mistakes of his predecessors. For one thing, using genuine human body parts did not help in the slightest. Flesh wears and tears, wrinkles form, muscle fades. Age alone can destroy the body.

Victor watched as the final data uploaded, and took it as a sign to start the true purpose of this project. He grabbed a wire that lay near the table and examined the long thin needle attached to the tip. He took the cable and slammed the needle into his forehead. Instantly collapsing, he writhed on the floor for what seemed like ages. Finally as his body went limp, there was silence, and the man lying on the table opened his eyes.

Victor had created perfection.

02 He sat silently in his overstuffed chair, fire consuming him.

Says:

He sat silently in his overstuffed chair, fire consuming him. His entire body went stiff, eyes frozen; still wide open, they stared into the open book that lay on his lap. His mouth was still agape, though he was cut off mid sentence. Not a bit of him moved from the seemingly awkward position in which he sat, as the flames continued to envelop him and his surroundings.

The entire library was filled with the fierce flame, and yet as the fire spread throughout the room, there was no smoke. Nothing was burning, but the fire continually grew in volume. With nothing damaged, there was no notable source of fuel being used. Soon enough the entire room was engulfed, and the book that lay in man’s lap began to glow bright white.

It was in this moment that the flames stopped. They did not disappear, but merely froze in their curving shapes, creating intricate ornate sculptures. And then the man blinked. The flames melted away in slow motion, and the bright lights faded as the book fell upon the chair where the man once was.

In a minute and twenty six seconds later from this exact instant, the door was forced open. A squad of eight men wearing heavy armor and gas masks scurried in through the haze of smoke grenades they’d thrown in before them. The lasers on their guns glowed bright red, and their goggles bright green. These faceless men began to search the room around them, and as they did a ninth man walked in through the smoke. A good three feet taller than the other men, he seemingly hovered across the room. His head high above the smoke and his cape barely grazing the wooden floor, he approached the thick red arm chair in the center of the room. He picked up the book and grimaced at the page. He knew it was too late.

Yet another had found escape. This man was the fourth to break away from the “faction”, and he would not be the last. It wasn’t this that bothered the tall man shrouded in smoke. It was the fact that he still had the medallion.

01 Kidnapping had never been this fun before.

Says:

Kidnapping had never been this fun before. With a child under each arm and the other still strapped to my back, I kicked open the front door. The grey van’s side door slides open and I lunge in as it peels off. Setting down the children, still bound and gagged, I hear the explosion and turn in time to see the billowing smoke rise from the Smith household.

The Smith’s were an average family, with a beautiful set of triplets the age of 4. Today was their birthday, and I came to help blow out the candles.

You may think it’s for ransom. It’s not money I’m after. I realize that only fifteen percent of hostage situations are ever successful. I have money. Money is how I managed all this, paying for the bomb, the van, the guns, the hired men. I choreographed this whole beautiful disaster.

I did this for the sake of doing it.

I’ve robbed banks, but for me it’s not the same rush that I get when I kidnap. With kidnapping you are not dealing with paper bills that someone says are important. You are dealing with living, breathing things. This is my type of money. I’ve been bartering with children on the black market for 3 years, all so I can finance my extravagant criminal endeavors. I love the thrill. I live for it, and lust after it.