Resistance
By Kelli Clayton
Gunshots rang through the air, nearly masking the sound of running feet over the rain-soaked streets. A teenage girl, red-haired and green-eyed, ran down the twilight darkened alley, chased by a small group of four men. The man leading the chase, in suit and tie, was shooting at her and thankfully missing.
A car screeched out in front of the running girl. "Torch! Get in!" The back door flew open and the girl jumped in. A bullet hit the closing door as they sped off down the rain-slicked street.
"Geez, Torch, you're insane!" the driver, a male named Neal and a few years older, said excitedly. "We told you to do it, but man, we never though you would!"
"Yeah! Psycho chick to the rescue!" That was the girl in the front passenger seat; a brown-haired girl named Marie.
"Did you get it?" asked the black man with the shaved head sitting next to Torch in the back seat. His name was Tank.
"Yeah, I got it," Torch replied, brushing back red curls from her forehead as she reached into her jacket and pulled a black disk from her inside pocket.
Marie reached back and snatched it from her hand. "So, this is it, huh? This is their Sameness Project?"
"I hope so. It was a pain to get, so you'd better be thankful," Torch teased.
"Oh, we are, girl," Tank said. "We most definitely are."
The car came to a stop in front of an old building, seemingly abandoned. All four got out of the car and walked inside, where it looked almost as bad as the outside. The walls were dirty, white, matching the ceiling with a few cracks here and there. A single light fixture hung lopsided from the ceiling by a few inches of exposed wiring.
The floor was wood with a few loose panels, and the windows were boarded up. To one side of the main room was a shabby couch with two equally shabby chairs. Computers, circuit boards, wires, cable, and other mechanical pieces were scattered about the other side of the room.
"You're late," Margo said as she stepped out of the hall. Her red hair and green eyes matched Torch's, her younger sister.
"Hey, sorry. "I had agents chasing after me all day," Torch replied as Marie handed the disk to Margo. "But at least I got it."
The corners of Margo's lips curled into a satisfied smirk. "Very good." She slid into one of the computer chairs and put the disk the main computer. "Gather 'round, kiddies," she joked as she typed in a few commands. "This is our big moment."
The soft computer glow flowed into the dim room as a window came up on screen. But instead of words and pictures, it was a series of symbols. The program was coded. A look of disappointment crossed everyone's face.
"Tank?" Margo stood and stepped aside.
Tank nodded and sat in the chair, typing quickly. "I'm all over it." After a while he stopped and spun around to face them. "Pretty high-tech stuff. They did their homework, but I can crack it. May take a few hours, possibly a day."
"Alright. The rest of us will have to wait," Margo said as she looked at the others. "You can survive a little while without action, right?"
Torch, Neal, and Marie sighed and moved to the other wide of the room with the couch and chair where they sat and waited.
It took almost a day, but the code was finally cracked around midnight. Margo was asleep on the couch with Marie on the floor beside it. Neal slept in one of the chairs, and Torch was still half awake in the other.
"Yeah! Woohoo!" Tank nearly knocked the chair over as he stood. The newly decoded program came up on screen as the others slowly roused from their sleep. When they realized what was going on they were wide awake.
"You did it!" Marie exclaimed as she lifted up on her toes to hug Tank. He hugged her back, lifting her off her feet before letting her go.
"Way to go!" Neal gave him a slap on the back.
"Yes, very good," Margo replied in her superior tone and hugged him lightly.
"Tank's the man!" Torch gave him a low hand slap, clasping his hand as he pulled her into a bear hug.
"Uh, guys," Neal interrupted as he looked over the computer plans for the Sameness Project. "Now's not the time to celebrate."
"Whatta ya mean?" Marie asked indignantly as she looked over her shoulder at him.
"I don't think we can stop this just yet." Neal pointed as the screen. "It's too well guarded and activation is in a week."
They were silent as Margo thought for a long while, but it was Torch who spoke. "What about a counter device? Cancel the signal."
Neal looked up at her. "Or a shield. It'll be a close call, but worth a shot. You guys get some rest. I need to read up on this, see what it actually does and how to block it."
"It's a very simple device, Mr. Whitney," Mr. Arnold explained from his seat behind his desk. He looked to be in his late thirties, a little gray peeking through the brown, with thick glasses and a clean suit. "What it does is it alters the human mind to see everything in monochrome. Not only that, it also blocks their memories of difference, such as race and hair color. This will turn the world into a controlled environment free of crime, with everyone ruled by committee."
"But, sir, what if something should go wrong? What if they accidentally remember something or try to repeat some past mistake?" Mr. Whitney sat uncomfortably in his chair.
"That is why there will be a Receiver, one person to carry the memories and advise the committees."
"And weather? What about that?"
"Shield it. This device, when activated, also creates a type of force field to keep out any type of weather fluxuation. Habitat generators will be placed strategically to keep the climate inside the shield at one temperature all year round to maintain crops."
"Why are you doing this?"
"I'm doing this because the world needs me to. The differences in the world create problems. People's ability to make their own decisions creates problems. I am going to change all that."
"But you're taking away free will!"
Mr. Arnold slammed his hands on his desk as he abruptly stood. "I'm giving these people better lives!"
"That is no way to live!" Mr. Whitney stood. "Individuality is part of what makes us human!"
"Sameness will unite the world!"
"It's immoral! I'll have no part in it!"
"Very well, Mr. Whitney." Mr. Arnold pushed a button under his desk. "You will be the first to be Released." Two guards came into the office, each taking one of Mr. Whitney's arms, and pulled him out of the room.
Marie and Tank climbed the mounds of trash and garbage as they searched the junkyard for useful parts.
"What'd he need again?" Marie asked over her shoulder.
"A bunch of wires, some cable, a decent motherboard, some scrap metal, a magnifying-."
"Alright, one at a time." Marie walked a bit before she found a discarded hard drive. She pried open the casing. "This work?"
Tank walked over beside her and looked at it, running a hand over his shaved head. "Yeah, maybe. Looks in tact. Good wiring. Don't know why someone threw it out."
Marie wasn't listening. She had already moved a few feet away and was now picking up a long, black cable. "How about this?"
"Hang on," Tank said as he walked to their pickup truck and put the hard drive in the back before moving back to inspect the cable. "It's got a few frayed spots, but I can fix it up. Toss it in the truck."
Marie nodded and coiled up the cable, lifting it over her shoulder. She climbed a mound of garbage before she saw them. Agents were at the gate. "Tank!" she called back to him. "Agents!"
Tank came running with a small bundle of metal and wires in his arms. He looked down at the gates, then at the truck only a few yards closer. "Run!"
They took off running, down the mound of garbage, towards the navy blue pickup truck. Tank reached it first, tossing the metal and wires into the back as he hurried into the driver's seat. Marie was right behind him, cable tossed into the back and climbing into the passenger seat. She closed the door as Tank kicked the truck into reverse.
The agents got the idea and sped through the gate as Tank swung the truck around and sped off between the garbage mounds.
"We can't get out this way!" Marie shouted.
"Yes, we can!" Tank shouted back as the chain-link fence loomed closer. "Duck!" Tank pushed Marie's head down on the seat between them, with his head down over hers, protecting her, with one hand on the steering wheel. The truck slammed through the fence like ripping through paper and Tank sat up again to steer. The agents still followed, but with a few quick turns down alleys and side streets, the agents lost them.
"They're late," Margo stated with superiority. "We can't waste any more time."
"They'll be here, don't-," Torch was cut off by the entrance of Marie and Tank, carrying the pieces they'd collected from the junkyard. They dumped their findings on a table.
"Agents. Lost 'em, though," Marie explained.
"This what you need?" Tank asked Neal.
"Yeah, this'll do." Neal looked over the odds and ends of metal and wire and cable. "Give me a few days."
They paced the building nervously for the next three days. Neal tinkered and toyed with the bits of scrap until, finally, "Finished."
Margo, Marie, Torch, and Tank gathered around. The device resembled a satellite dish, which Marie stated.
"Yeah, it helps create the shield effect. Pretty soon we'll be the only free city left," Neal said as he flipped the switch. The device glowed a soft white as a beam of light shot through the sky, and spread out over the city before it faded.
"Shield in place," he said, relieved. "Let's hope it works.
Mr. Arnold walked out onto the roof of the Committee Building. He was dressed in his finest suit, with a smug look on his face. "Let the ceremony begin," he said to no one as he stepped up to the Sameness Device mounted to the roof. He flipped the switch and the beam of light shot up, covering the sky before turning everything to monochrome. Everything became the same, except two things: Mr. Arnold and the city to the north.
Mr. Arnold cursed under his breath. "Those blasted Resistance punks! What a nuisance. I'll crush them. Someday I'll crush them all, and then everything will be perfect." His pale eyes flashed with anger as he turned and walked back into the building.
The end?
Gunshots rang through the air, nearly masking the sound of running feet over the rain-soaked streets. A teenage girl, red-haired and green-eyed, ran down the twilight darkened alley, chased by a small group of four men. The man leading the chase, in suit and tie, was shooting at her and thankfully missing.
A car screeched out in front of the running girl. "Torch! Get in!" The back door flew open and the girl jumped in. A bullet hit the closing door as they sped off down the rain-slicked street.
"Geez, Torch, you're insane!" the driver, a male named Neal and a few years older, said excitedly. "We told you to do it, but man, we never though you would!"
"Yeah! Psycho chick to the rescue!" That was the girl in the front passenger seat; a brown-haired girl named Marie.
"Did you get it?" asked the black man with the shaved head sitting next to Torch in the back seat. His name was Tank.
"Yeah, I got it," Torch replied, brushing back red curls from her forehead as she reached into her jacket and pulled a black disk from her inside pocket.
Marie reached back and snatched it from her hand. "So, this is it, huh? This is their Sameness Project?"
"I hope so. It was a pain to get, so you'd better be thankful," Torch teased.
"Oh, we are, girl," Tank said. "We most definitely are."
The car came to a stop in front of an old building, seemingly abandoned. All four got out of the car and walked inside, where it looked almost as bad as the outside. The walls were dirty, white, matching the ceiling with a few cracks here and there. A single light fixture hung lopsided from the ceiling by a few inches of exposed wiring.
The floor was wood with a few loose panels, and the windows were boarded up. To one side of the main room was a shabby couch with two equally shabby chairs. Computers, circuit boards, wires, cable, and other mechanical pieces were scattered about the other side of the room.
"You're late," Margo said as she stepped out of the hall. Her red hair and green eyes matched Torch's, her younger sister.
"Hey, sorry. "I had agents chasing after me all day," Torch replied as Marie handed the disk to Margo. "But at least I got it."
The corners of Margo's lips curled into a satisfied smirk. "Very good." She slid into one of the computer chairs and put the disk the main computer. "Gather 'round, kiddies," she joked as she typed in a few commands. "This is our big moment."
The soft computer glow flowed into the dim room as a window came up on screen. But instead of words and pictures, it was a series of symbols. The program was coded. A look of disappointment crossed everyone's face.
"Tank?" Margo stood and stepped aside.
Tank nodded and sat in the chair, typing quickly. "I'm all over it." After a while he stopped and spun around to face them. "Pretty high-tech stuff. They did their homework, but I can crack it. May take a few hours, possibly a day."
"Alright. The rest of us will have to wait," Margo said as she looked at the others. "You can survive a little while without action, right?"
Torch, Neal, and Marie sighed and moved to the other wide of the room with the couch and chair where they sat and waited.
It took almost a day, but the code was finally cracked around midnight. Margo was asleep on the couch with Marie on the floor beside it. Neal slept in one of the chairs, and Torch was still half awake in the other.
"Yeah! Woohoo!" Tank nearly knocked the chair over as he stood. The newly decoded program came up on screen as the others slowly roused from their sleep. When they realized what was going on they were wide awake.
"You did it!" Marie exclaimed as she lifted up on her toes to hug Tank. He hugged her back, lifting her off her feet before letting her go.
"Way to go!" Neal gave him a slap on the back.
"Yes, very good," Margo replied in her superior tone and hugged him lightly.
"Tank's the man!" Torch gave him a low hand slap, clasping his hand as he pulled her into a bear hug.
"Uh, guys," Neal interrupted as he looked over the computer plans for the Sameness Project. "Now's not the time to celebrate."
"Whatta ya mean?" Marie asked indignantly as she looked over her shoulder at him.
"I don't think we can stop this just yet." Neal pointed as the screen. "It's too well guarded and activation is in a week."
They were silent as Margo thought for a long while, but it was Torch who spoke. "What about a counter device? Cancel the signal."
Neal looked up at her. "Or a shield. It'll be a close call, but worth a shot. You guys get some rest. I need to read up on this, see what it actually does and how to block it."
"It's a very simple device, Mr. Whitney," Mr. Arnold explained from his seat behind his desk. He looked to be in his late thirties, a little gray peeking through the brown, with thick glasses and a clean suit. "What it does is it alters the human mind to see everything in monochrome. Not only that, it also blocks their memories of difference, such as race and hair color. This will turn the world into a controlled environment free of crime, with everyone ruled by committee."
"But, sir, what if something should go wrong? What if they accidentally remember something or try to repeat some past mistake?" Mr. Whitney sat uncomfortably in his chair.
"That is why there will be a Receiver, one person to carry the memories and advise the committees."
"And weather? What about that?"
"Shield it. This device, when activated, also creates a type of force field to keep out any type of weather fluxuation. Habitat generators will be placed strategically to keep the climate inside the shield at one temperature all year round to maintain crops."
"Why are you doing this?"
"I'm doing this because the world needs me to. The differences in the world create problems. People's ability to make their own decisions creates problems. I am going to change all that."
"But you're taking away free will!"
Mr. Arnold slammed his hands on his desk as he abruptly stood. "I'm giving these people better lives!"
"That is no way to live!" Mr. Whitney stood. "Individuality is part of what makes us human!"
"Sameness will unite the world!"
"It's immoral! I'll have no part in it!"
"Very well, Mr. Whitney." Mr. Arnold pushed a button under his desk. "You will be the first to be Released." Two guards came into the office, each taking one of Mr. Whitney's arms, and pulled him out of the room.
Marie and Tank climbed the mounds of trash and garbage as they searched the junkyard for useful parts.
"What'd he need again?" Marie asked over her shoulder.
"A bunch of wires, some cable, a decent motherboard, some scrap metal, a magnifying-."
"Alright, one at a time." Marie walked a bit before she found a discarded hard drive. She pried open the casing. "This work?"
Tank walked over beside her and looked at it, running a hand over his shaved head. "Yeah, maybe. Looks in tact. Good wiring. Don't know why someone threw it out."
Marie wasn't listening. She had already moved a few feet away and was now picking up a long, black cable. "How about this?"
"Hang on," Tank said as he walked to their pickup truck and put the hard drive in the back before moving back to inspect the cable. "It's got a few frayed spots, but I can fix it up. Toss it in the truck."
Marie nodded and coiled up the cable, lifting it over her shoulder. She climbed a mound of garbage before she saw them. Agents were at the gate. "Tank!" she called back to him. "Agents!"
Tank came running with a small bundle of metal and wires in his arms. He looked down at the gates, then at the truck only a few yards closer. "Run!"
They took off running, down the mound of garbage, towards the navy blue pickup truck. Tank reached it first, tossing the metal and wires into the back as he hurried into the driver's seat. Marie was right behind him, cable tossed into the back and climbing into the passenger seat. She closed the door as Tank kicked the truck into reverse.
The agents got the idea and sped through the gate as Tank swung the truck around and sped off between the garbage mounds.
"We can't get out this way!" Marie shouted.
"Yes, we can!" Tank shouted back as the chain-link fence loomed closer. "Duck!" Tank pushed Marie's head down on the seat between them, with his head down over hers, protecting her, with one hand on the steering wheel. The truck slammed through the fence like ripping through paper and Tank sat up again to steer. The agents still followed, but with a few quick turns down alleys and side streets, the agents lost them.
"They're late," Margo stated with superiority. "We can't waste any more time."
"They'll be here, don't-," Torch was cut off by the entrance of Marie and Tank, carrying the pieces they'd collected from the junkyard. They dumped their findings on a table.
"Agents. Lost 'em, though," Marie explained.
"This what you need?" Tank asked Neal.
"Yeah, this'll do." Neal looked over the odds and ends of metal and wire and cable. "Give me a few days."
They paced the building nervously for the next three days. Neal tinkered and toyed with the bits of scrap until, finally, "Finished."
Margo, Marie, Torch, and Tank gathered around. The device resembled a satellite dish, which Marie stated.
"Yeah, it helps create the shield effect. Pretty soon we'll be the only free city left," Neal said as he flipped the switch. The device glowed a soft white as a beam of light shot through the sky, and spread out over the city before it faded.
"Shield in place," he said, relieved. "Let's hope it works.
Mr. Arnold walked out onto the roof of the Committee Building. He was dressed in his finest suit, with a smug look on his face. "Let the ceremony begin," he said to no one as he stepped up to the Sameness Device mounted to the roof. He flipped the switch and the beam of light shot up, covering the sky before turning everything to monochrome. Everything became the same, except two things: Mr. Arnold and the city to the north.
Mr. Arnold cursed under his breath. "Those blasted Resistance punks! What a nuisance. I'll crush them. Someday I'll crush them all, and then everything will be perfect." His pale eyes flashed with anger as he turned and walked back into the building.
The end?