When Tom’s harsh posture sank, Jake’s heart ached. He’d pushed it too far. “I’m sorry, man.”
Tom didn’t respond.
When would he learn to think before he spoke? “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have gone there.” Talking about Thalia was out of order.
Tom stared straight through him as if he hadn’t spoken, his eyes glazed.
Grabbing his glasses, Jake paused before removing them and handing them to Tom. Squinting, he shielded his eyes with his spare hand. “Here, have these. I’m sorry.”
After clearing his throat, Tom brushed loose strands of his hair away from his forehead. He had the tightest ponytail, but not even that was a match for the strong winds. Looking at the glasses through tear-filled eyes, Tom paused. Crow’s feet stretched across his temples. Clarity returned to his features. “I don’t want your stupid glasses.” After another deep sigh, he looked across at the sky-scraping obsidian obelisk on the horizon. Other than the dusty sun, which they saw infrequently, it was the only thing on the skyline.
Lifting the glasses towards his friend, Jake said, “Are you sure?”
A scowl met his question.
The relief was instant when Jake slipped the glasses back on. Allowing his weeping eyes to clear the grit themselves, Jake ignored the burn as much as he could and followed Tom’s line of sight over to the dark tower. Running down its spine, blurred on the horizon, it read RIXON. An exact replica of the tower dominated every city.
“I can’t believe our only landmark is that phallic symbol of oppression,” Jake said. “Look at it, it’s penetrating the clouds like they’re the world’s arsehole. Quite fitting really.” He then threw it the bird.
It was nice to see Tom’s eyes brighten and the scarf across his mouth lift as if he were smiling. “Someone probably saw that. I’d imagine those arseholes controlling our lives love that kind of reaction. It shows they’re winning.”
“You really think the rich have retreated into the towers and our lives are entertainment for them?”
Tom shrugged. “Of course. It may have looked like Rixon crushed all of the other companies, but the previous corporation’s grip on the world was too firm. There’s no way they simply vanished. Those companies set the rules, not Rixon. He only succeeded with their permission. For all we know, Patrick Rixon’s just a front for them. I guarantee you that the fat cats from before are the ones waiting in the towers now.” Turning to look at Jake, he raised his eyebrows. “As for us as entertainment? What else are they going to do while they wait for everyone to die?”
Whether Tom was right or not, living in such a heightened state of paranoia wasn’t for Jake. Searching their surroundings, he shook his head. “I can barely remember the city now. I try to imagine where the Cube Building once was, the University Clock Tower, the Alpha Tower.”
“It’s hard to remember Birmingham not looking like this isn’t it?” Scanning the wasteland, Tom wrinkled his nose. “Not stinking of death and decay.”
Having got so used to the stench, it was only when it was pointed out to him that Jake could smell the decomposing gasses.
Looking up, Jake watched the broiling clouds. Grey and heavy, they looked like they contained churning rocks that would rain down oblivion. “I couldn’t quite believe what I was seeing when they leveled the city.”
Tom didn’t reply.
“The controlled explosions lasted for… what? About a week? I didn’t get much sleep during that time.” When Jake drew a breath, his lungs burned. “I got that much dust on my lungs that I don’t feel like I’ve been able to breathe properly since.”
Shaking his head, Tom said, “It was a crazy week. It was quite amazing to see how the Bots cleared the gamers out of a building, leveled it, and then put them back on the rubble. Their efficiency was impressive.”
“They were designed by a German. What do you expect?”
The rag on Tom’s face jumped away as a forced laugh shot from his mouth.
“It was a good idea of yours to hide by the Rixon Tower, Tom. There was no way they were blowing up their penis of corporate domination.”
At first Tom didn’t reply. Instead, he stared at the tower before finally sighing. “Sometimes I wonder if it was. We should have just let a building collapse on us; that would have been a hell of a lot easier.” Throwing another glance back in the direction they’d come from, Tom looked back at the tower.
“You don’t…” Jake fell into a coughing fit. Once he’d recovered, he lifted the scarf covering his mouth and spat a metallic-tasting bilious lump of phlegm on the floor. It wobbled on a dusty brick. Swallowing several times did nothing to tame the burn in his throat. “…mean that.”
Speaking in monotone, Tom said, “I do.” Tears welled in his eyes. “If I’d have known what we were going to do Thalia…” A frown dipped on his brow.
Without another word, Jake hobbled over to his friend and put an arm over his bony shoulder. The two of them stared at the tower.
After about five minutes of standing with his arm around Tom, Jake could feel the tingle of an impending cramp in his shoulder. Unwrapping himself from his tall friend, he patted him on the back. “Come on, man, let’s go.”
Tears streamed from Tom’s wide eyes as he stared into the distance, unblinking, even in the dust storm.
Clicking his fingers, Jake said, “Tom, come on, we’ve got to get moving.”
When there was still no response, Jake couldn’t think of anything else to say other than, “What if they’re still following us?”
Tom’s eyes snapped even wider, and he jerked his head round to stare in the direction they’d come from.
Moving closer to his friend, Jake spoke softly. “Why don’t you tell me what they look like?”
Silence.
“Okay, mate, fair enough. We need to get moving though.”
The tall man still didn’t reply.
Hobbling off on his still sore leg, Jake stopped almost instantly when Tom said, “I can’t believe that it was only four years ago when we were caught up in the rat race like every other mug.” He laughed with zero humor. “Do you remember the advertisements? They were everywhere.”
Seeing his friend falling into a depressive spiral, Jake stepped away from him. “Come on, we need to keep walking. Thinking about the past isn’t going to help anyone.”
Wobbling under the force of nature, Tom imitated the gruff American voice selling the product that would change their world forever. He sounded like a voiceover for a Hollywood action movie trailer. “Five dimensions is the future of entertainment. Now you can taste, touch, and smell what you’re seeing and hearing. Rixon will give you the experience of your life. If you can think it, you can live it.” Shaking his head, he snorted a laugh. “It seemed so bizarre, like something you’d see in a movie. I never thought entertainment would be able to respond to your subconscious and give you everything you desired.”
The bruise on Jake’s shin throbbed as he set off again. Tom would follow. Two pairs of eyes were better than one, and Tom, more than anything, was driven by the need to find his son.
Watching Jake walk away, she then looked at his temperamental friend. Why did Jake even put up with him? All he did was drag him down with his depressing quest to find his son. There was so much out there for Jake if only he could cast his friend aside.
No time had passed since she’d started watching the pair, but she already knew her wishes were pointless. Loyal to a fault, Jake would keep Tom around regardless of the damage to himself.
Looking around at her brothers and sisters, all of them driven by a similar purpose to her, all of them staring with obsessive intent, she let the tension slide from her shoulders. She couldn’t control the situation. The only power she had was of intervention, and it was far too early for that.